The Art of Sacrifice
by The Sweeping Channel
Summary: What is the true meaning of family? Are they only those bound to you by blood? Or is the meaning something deeper? To Sayomi Uchiha, the answer had always been simple. But once her sanity finally reached the precipice of inward disappearance and overwhelming self-destruction, the role of her so-called 'loved ones' changed into something much, much darker than expected... (Rated M)
1. Chapter 1 - The First Encounter

_She looked at him in silence, and he returned her worries with his own steely gaze. He walked towards her and she tensed, preparing for the worst. But he didn't intend to hurt her. He intended to help her._

"_Are you ready?" he asked, closing the topmost button of the girl's vest. She nodded, her long black hair falling over her shoulder as she stared respectfully at the ground. He took her chin in his hands and forced her to look up at him, his eyes black and filled with the watchful suspicion that came with caring for a loved one who was about to embark on a rather dangerous assignment._

"_I am," she replied, although in her heart it was a lie. She wasn't ready to do this, to leave his side. She couldn't stand to be away from him for this long, and she was certain that she would long for him severely once she was out of his grasp. But she said the words, inwardly telling herself that they were true. She was ready. She had to be. He stepped back, restoring the respectful distance we had maintained up until now._

"_Then you remember the plan," he concluded, and she nodded hastily. _

"_The plan," she responded, "is to kill Naruto."_

"_By any means necessary," he added, and she nodded again. _

"_Any means necessary," she repeated. "Without getting caught."_

"_Because if you do get caught –"_

"_I won't," she interjected, cutting him off. He paused for a moment at her brazen outburst, and after a moment, his thin lips formed into a satisfied smirk. He stepped closer - much closer than before - and put his hands over her ears, pulling her to him. She shivered as his icy mouth touched her forehead in an endearing reminder of ownership._

"_Good girl," he replied, and she smiled. Hearing praise from her brother's mouth was like being granted a vision of eternal happiness. "Now for your transformation."_

"_Of course," she replied, folding her hands in front of her. Her fingers flew as she formed the seals for the summoning jutsu that she would need to change her appearance. About one minute and half of her chakra later, she stood, reformed, in front of him, and watched as he looked her over with approving eyes. _

"_Impressive," he said softly. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you were a totally different person. Excellent job." He held out the small backpack containing all of the essentials for her journey, and she turned to let him slip it onto her back. His hands grazed her backside and she blushed. It must have been an accident. _

"_Wish me luck," she said quietly as he began forming a clone of himself… a necessary distraction. _

"_You don't need luck," they both said simultaneously. "You have enough skill. This plan will not fail."_

"_Of course," she replied, bowing modestly. "If you say it, then it must be the truth."_

_The clone stepped next to her and she looked at him out of the corner of her eye, the one that wasn't hidden underneath her hair. They both nodded once, an unspoken affirmation that they wouldn't see each other again, then disappeared in opposite directions, vanishing amongst the dancing shadows of the forest and leaving her brother watching, always watching, in the silence that was his own consummation. _

_**The first day…**_

There he was. Uchiha Sasuke, the being who was once my closest friend. We had once shared laughs and secrets, and now, here we were, fighting against each other. It seemed ages ago that we had battled in the Valley of the End. And yet, it still didn't feel real. I didn't know if it was because he was trapping me in a genjutsu with his sharingan, or if this was all just a dream, or if I was just freaking myself out, but either way, I was having trouble believing that this was the moment I had been living my life for since he left. There was a nagging thought in my mind that this was going to be just like the other times I had seen him recently, but I ignored it. I had to, or else I wouldn't be able to finish this.

But none of that mattered now, because I was here and he was there, and I was charging and he was standing still. I plunged my kunai into him and he burst into a thousand pieces.

"NO!" I shouted angrily. "Not _another_ shadow clone!"

"Forget it, Naruto," Sakura said behind me, appearing out of nowhere. "Sasuke's playing with our minds. He's sending us out on a wild goose chase. Every time there's been an apparent sighting of Sasuke Uchiha, and every time we've had to fight a shadow clone. There's no point."

"He's distracting us," Kakashi-sensei agreed. "He has something bigger planned."

"But why is he making us fight shadow clones? Why isn't he just fighting us himself?" I asked, looking at him in frustration.

"Because he doesn't want us to figure out what he's hiding and, more importantly, where he's hiding it," he replied.

"We're just gonna have to be on guard," Sakura replied resolutely.

"No more phony missions!"

We trudged back through the woods towards the path that led back to the village.

"I should've known this was a fake. I mean, why would Sasuke come this close to the village in the first place? It's a bust!" I mumbled. "What are we gonna do now? Go home?"

"We have no choice, Naruto. Don't be sad."

"Sad?" I retorted. "Sad?! I'm not sad! In fact, I'm _glad_ we get to go home. I can't wait. You know why? Because I'm _starving_." I was angry. If Sasuke thought for even one second that he could keep being a jerk to us, then he was wrong. Actually, I was happy that it wasn't Sasuke, because I had a feeling the entire time that it was a shadow clone, and I would have kicked some serious butt if it hadn't been. Then again… last time, I got stuck in his genjutsu and went berserk.

"Can't you go even an hour without food?" Sakura asked, annoyed at my needs.

"Not if there's nothing to distract me," I answered.

"Why can't you distract yourself for a change?" she argued.

"Because I like being entertained!"

"Why, you arrogant little-"

"Alright, you two," Kakashi-sensei said, pulling us apart. I stood smugly as Sakura struggled against him.

"I know you're both frustrated about not catching Sasuke, but you're gonna have to deal with it for now," Kakashi-sensei said calmly, walking between us. At least I could always rely on him to be the voice of reason in times like this. He always knew what to say to keep us relatively calm.

We kept running, and it didn't take long until I saw the gate from the village.

"Finally!" I exclaimed. "Food!"

Sakura groaned, but I ignored her. Whatever. It wasn't like she had anything important to say anyway.

I ran ahead of the others. There was a hot bowl of Ramen cooking back at the village, and it had my name on it in big orange letters.

The forest was almost over when I heard muffled yelps near where the road was. I stopped, looking around in silence.

_Should I go?_ I thought, remembering the delicious food that awaited me back home. I looked back and saw that Sakura and Kakashi-sensei were still far behind me.

_Oh, what the heck!_ I thought, and darted into the trees. I followed the annoyed sounds as stealthily as possibly until I came to where they were sounding from. It was a small clearing surrounded by tall trees whose leaves made a roof that blocked out all but a little ray of sunlight. I peeked curiously around a tree and saw a girl fighting with something that looked like a bear cub. It had its teeth around her little backpack and was trying to rip it out of her hands.

"… can you let go now? My bag's not even that interesting! I bet you don't even like vanilla cream! Please, just let go and I won't have to hurt you!"

The bear cub only grunted and tugged harder. I suppressed a laugh as the mysterious girl fell forward onto the grass.

"Why are you so _cute_?" she asked, digging her toes into the ground as the bear tried to drag her away. "If you were at least ugly or something, I could kick you and be done with it. But you're so cuddly that I can't hurt you! But I can't let you win either, so let GO!"

"Hey, Naruto! Where'd you run off to?" Sakura called from somewhere behind me. My head spun around for a second, willing her to shut up. I heard a rustling of leaves in the clearing and I looked back. The bear was sitting on the ground, munching happily on what looked like a piece of frosted cake.

And all that was left of the girl was a few wisps of smoke.

* * *

**Here I am again! This is a remake of the original story, which I deleted, but which is pretty much the same. Some major changes from the last one, if you're interested; a few names have changed, but those of you who've read it prior should be able to recognize everyone right away. And old names don't matter anyways, so whatever xD O.O and there are more... DETAILS! :D I LOVE DETAILSSSS! :))**

**... please review! I know it's only the first chapter, and I promise I won't bother you anymore after this, but I really appreciate review; they let me know that people are reading! :) Thanks!  
**

**~ Sweep  
**


	2. Chapter 2 - The Second Encounter

"_You know, Leiko," the young girl said, dangling her bare feet over the edge of the cliff. Her short black hair whipped around her face as she pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders to keep the sand off of her skin. "I've always wondered what it was like in all of the other Hidden Villages."_

"_Why?" her best friend asked, her long, red braid flailing around in a similar fashion as she shielded her eyes from the blazing sun and the blowing sand. "It's not like you're ever gonna go there."_

"_How do you know?" the girl retorted crossly. "You can't see the future!"_

"_I don't have to, Sayomi," Leiko answered with a grin. "You're probably gonna get married and have loads of children, and that's going to be the rest of your life."_

"_Is not!"_

"_Anyways," the redhead continued, "Even if I did know, I wouldn't tell you."_

"_How come?" Sayomi asked curiously, wondering why on earth her friend would withhold such valuable information._

"_Because that's the whole point of being a shinobi!" Leiko replied excitedly. "You get to travel the world and see new places and things, and make tons of new friends! If I told you now, then you would already know, and that would _totally_ kill the surprise."_

"_So, do you know?" Sayomi asked, positive that the girl was hiding something. _

"_No," Leiko replied bluntly, and Sayomi fell back in disappointment._

"_Oh," she replied simply, and the girls sat in silence. After a moment, she spoke again. "Do you think we'll ever see a forest? Or the ocean?"_

"_Positive," Leiko replied, hugging her friend enthusiastically. "We'll go see the world together, just the two of us, when we're jōnin. We'll go all the way to the Land of Waves, and then we'll go to the Land of Fire, and then we'll go to the Land of Lightning, and Earth, and Bears, and Noodles…"_

_Sayomi laughed. "The Land of Noodles? You're crazy!"_

"_Nuh-uh," Leiko replied, pouting. "Koruna-sensei told me all about the land of Noodles! You can make a Land out of everything!"_

"_What land do you wanna make?" Sayomi asked, and both girls began to think. Suddenly, they both cried out the only thing that seemed to make sense at the moment, proving just how similar they really were. _

_Their stomachs growled in unison as they shouted happily, "The Land of DANGO~!"_

_**Shortly afterwards…**_

My worn out sandals padded gently along the dirt road. Those three idiots probably weren't even _close_ to the village, the way they were carrying on back there. Of course, I had to get away before that Naruto had a chance to get a good look at me. Luckily, Sakura had called him at the last moment, and I was able to hide behind the trees before he got the idea to go looking for me. I couldn't let him see me up close just yet.

The village gate loomed over me as I passed through it, as if warning me to stay out. I guess that was part of the job description. But I wouldn't let some gate scare me into abandoning my purpose, however dark it may have been. I always tell myself that no matter how tall something is, I'll always be taller once I climb it. And I also knew that in order to fulfill my mission, I had to start here.

With my weighted, brown shoulder bag slung over my shoulder, I approached the two people sitting by the entrance, probably another plot to scare off intruders, although they didn't look very imposing.

"Hello," I said politely. The one sitting on the left looked up from the magazine that he was reading. He gave me the once over, and then nodded slowly, nudging the guy next to him.

"Hi," the other guy said. "May we… help you?"

"Actually, I'm looking for…" I glanced idly at the blank piece of paper in my hand. "…Hatake Kakashi. Could you direct me to him?"

The first guy stretched loudly.

"Yeah, we could…" he answered. "But why do you wanna see him? I don't think he's expecting any visitors today. Especially not from the Hidden Sand."

The second guy eyed me suspiciously, as if waiting for an explanation.

"Yes, well… um…" I said, thinking a mile a minute. "I was told that… uh… Kakashi was a sensei here in the Hidden Leaf Village, and that he was part of an… um… part of a… part of a long-term agreement with my teacher over in the Sand, and… well, that is to say_, _um… now that I'm sixteen, I was, uh… sent here to… train with him!"

"Is that so?" the first one asked, glancing at the other.

"Uh huh!" I said, attempting my most convincing smile.

"I dunno…" the second one said, returning the glance. He came out of their little booth and began to circle me like some kind of obscene bird. I gave an annoyed _humph_ and crossed my arms.

"Looking for something specific?" I asked, trying not to sound too annoyed. He shrugged.

"Just checking to make sure you're not trying to sell us something, that's all," he answered.

"Are all the villagers as friendly as you are?" I asked sarcastically. He chuckled.

"I'd be careful," he answered. "With a little-girl voice like that, people may actually take you seriously."

"So, what do you think?" the first one asked from behind his magazine. I frowned. He wasn't even paying attention!

"She has the outfit and the manners, but I'm not so sure she has the skills."

"Skills? What skills?" I asked curiously. The man who had been circumnavigating me went back into their little booth and smiled. It was becoming increasingly difficult for me not to get angry.

The guy leaned back in his chair and grinned.

"Go over to that gate and climb it. If you can do it, and if you can manage to get back onto the ground in one piece, and at the same time do it so that it doesn't take too long, we'll know you're a shinobi. Otherwise, we'll have to send you back home. And no cheating, missy."

I nodded, setting down my things. "Fair enough," I said, preparing to run. I figured the best way to scale the huge pillars was to run all the way to the top vertically by focusing my chakra into the soles of my feet. Once I reached the top, I would have to run across at top speed (so as not to bore my future comrades here…), and then spiral back down with my kunai plunged into the wood. Easy enough, right? I might leave a scratch or two, but who cares? I never liked that gate anyways.

I inhaled deeply, then kicked off into a sprint. The wind whipped across my face, stirring my - well, I guess it was mine, at least for now - hair into a frenzy. My feet thudded against the ground as I ran faster. I wasn't running at my fastest speed, considering that if I did, I would overshoot the gate by at least half a mile before those guys even knew I had left. So, I ran along at a comfortable pace, although it must have looked to be much more than that to those imbeciles over in the booth.

There wasn't very much distance between the booth and the gate, so I figured I should start at the pillar that was farther away, just so that I could get a bit more of a head start. I needed every ounce of speed I could manage (without seeming overly exuberant) if I planned on making it up the pillar with minimal humiliation.

I leaned forward as my feet left the ground and landed on the wood. My chakra transferred quickly, as I had long since mastered the skill, and it only took a fraction of a second before I was running towards the sky. As I neared the top, I braced myself in case I missed (which, of course, wouldn't happen). With a final heaving jump, I grabbed the edge of the wooden slab that made up the top of the archway. The speed from my climb propelled me up into the air, where I landed on the wide expanse that overlooked the entire village. However, I hadn't even the shortest moment to waste on admiring the view.

Without even the slightest hesitation, I sped towards the other side as soon as my feet touched something tangible. While I was running, I saw the marketplace and the surrounding houses and people. I spied what seemed to be the training grounds, and also another large building, but I didn't take the time to admire it.

I had almost reached the end when I realized that my kunai was still in my bag… that I had conveniently left on the ground.

_Alright, think. Your brother didn't say you were a chūnin for nothing, _I thought, scolding myself. _And if you panic, you'll fall and break your neck. And how can you fight if your neck is broken? So let's see… you only have… your shuriken, and your wrist bandages, and…_

My thought was cut short once I realized what I could do. That's all I needed! I began to untie my wrists until I had two strips of white cloth; I hastily tied them together, and slid one of my shuriken out of my sleeve, attaching it to the white rope that I had haphazardly fashioned.

I only had one shot.

I jumped down, flinging my makeshift lasso around the wooden column. I rejoiced silently when I caught it, but winced when the shuriken cut into my skin. It only took a few seconds of (what seemed like) free-fall until I landed with a thud on the ground. I was so distracted by my victory that I failed to notice the three morons from the forest approaching the gate that I had just conquered. I trotted back over to the two men that were discussing my performance.

"I don't know…" the first one was saying. I picked up my pack and dusted myself off.

"She almost missed that ledge, and that climb…"

I grew angry.

"That's it!" I said hotly. "First, you make me do this _ridiculous_ 'challenge' of yours, which isn't even _remotely_ difficult, and then you mock me because of some minor error, and you expect me to just-"

"Is there a problem here?" a man asked behind me. I spun around angrily.

"Yes, there's a…" I stopped when I saw who stood there. A man with gray, spiky hair, and a face almost completely covered in a black cloth, was staring at me curiously. At his side were two people about my age, one blond and one green-eyed girl, and they had the same expression on their faces.

I tried to remember their names. From what my brother had told me, these must have been the people I was looking for. The man in the middle must have been Hatake Kakashi, and the two teens were Naruto Uzumaki and Sakura Haruno. They looked friendly enough… except for the fact that I knew them not to be.

"May I help you?" he asked.

"If you're anything like those two," I said, pointing behind me, "then no, you can't."

"Well then, I'm sure you'll be glad to hear that I'm not-"

"C'mon, Kakashi-sensei! Enough with the formalities already! I'm hungry!" Naruto whined.

"Hush up, Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed. "Can't you wait a few more minutes?"

"_You're _Hatake Kakashi?" I asked in disbelief. He nodded.

"Wow," I said. "I expected someone a lot… more… um…"

"Old?" he suggested. I nodded sheepishly. His eyebrow raised in amusement.

"This girl says she's looking for you," the first guy called out from the booth. "Something about an agreement with the Sand Village."

_Idiot!_ I thought. _You had to spoil it!_ _Now I have to actually explain why I'm here!_

"Well, um… the thing is, I-" I stammered.

"Ah, yes," Kakashi interrupted calmly. "The agreement with the Sand Village. Of course."

I stared at him in awe. I had made the entire thing up! "H-huh?" I blurted out, against my better judgment.

"You're a chūnin, right?" he asked. I swallowed and nodded hesitantly. Although I had never formally passed (or finished, for that matter) the chūnin exams, my brother had assured me that I was at the right level. And my brother never lies. True, he had also said that I had the taijutsu skill of a dead squirrel, but I had the edge, considering what I possessed would teach me everything I needed to know in no time. Not to mention my special weapons that I had inherited from a mysterious passer-by…

"That's good enough. Come with us," he said, and motioned for me to follow him.

I walked slowly, always lagging behind the others, using my solitude to take in the scenery around me. It was different here than in the Sand, where I had spent my entire life up until a few months ago, when I had left to search for my brother. It was a lot greener here, and there were more colors. People weren't constantly dressed in burgundies and beiges and browns. There were yellows and oranges and blues and greens, which made everything seem brighter and more lifelike.

I looked up and my seclusion increased by a considerable increment. They looked so perfect the way they were, walking on either side of their teacher. They were almost like a little family. I stared at my feet for a moment, contemplating the nature of my own aloneness. I had been on my own for so long until I had found my brother, and looking at the trio in front of me brought back so many terrible, terrible memories…

"You're from the Sand Village, right?"

I looked up suddenly and realized that Naruto had matched my pace, and was now walking next to me. My brother had taken extra care to warn me about how to show my feelings around Naruto. He had told me not to lose control around him, no matter how stupid he acted. And, according to him, I'd have to exercise a considerable amount of self-restraint when I was around him, since every other thing he did was stupid. He also mentioned that no matter how much a person hurt you, you can't let them know that they did, or else you entire plan for revenge was toast. And I planned a lot of revenge. So, I answered in the calmest, most reserved way I could.

"Yes," I said simply. "I am."

"Cool!" he said. His cheerfulness was making me even more depressed. I didn't even know why they were so happy! They had just gotten their butts kicked by one of-

"So… um… what's your name?" he asked. I had to think. I couldn't tell him my real name, the name my brother had accepted me by, because that would give me away. I had to make up a new name, one that wouldn't give me away. Ironically, while the name I told Naruto was nothing like the one I had been called back home, it still brought about a slight nostalgic air when considering that I once belonged to a myriad of children bearing the last name _Sabito_…

"My name is… Sachi. Sachi Ito," I said quickly. At the moment, I had still been trying to figure out why Kakashi had just accepted my obviously invented excuse. I knew I should have thought it through better before I just… waltzed into the village without a proper story. I mean, what teacher has a long-term foreign exchange program? What was he playing at? That is… unless I looked enough like my brother for them to… but I doubted it. My costume was pretty convincing. I was wearing someone else's light-brown hair, and I had on someone else's sharp gray eyes, etc. The only thing I couldn't cover was my family heirloom, which I cleverly hid under a segment of my - her - hair. My disguise didn't cover everything, though. My bone structure was still relatively the same. I still had my own facial features, just a new skin to cover them.

I was so thrilled when I discovered that I could do this solely with chakra. It was wonderful, transforming for the first time, although it was less of a transformation, and more of being encased in a new skin. I was still the same raven-haired, black-eyed girl I was born as, only it was being covered by something. They'd never figure out my real name! Sayomi…

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki," he replied.

"I know," I answered bluntly. "You have quite the reputation where I come from. They say you were friends with our… Kazakage."

I was trying to friendly, I really was. And it seemed to be working. He smiled at me, and I smiled back, even though he was nothing but a cold-blooded murderer and a traitor in my eyes.

Suddenly, a smell wafted over to where we were walking. It was the most delicious smell, something that I had missed since the day I left civilization. It was soft, yet spicy… delicious and tender. It was the smell of my favorite dish…

"RAMEN!" Naruto shouted, jolting me out of my daydream. I watched him dart over to a small, outdoor shop with a red awning. Even though I was all the way down the road, I could hear him fawning over his bowl of soup. My brother had told me about this. Once Naruto smelled Ramen, he might as well be a shark surrounded by a swarm of bleeding tuna. There was absolutely no stopping him.

"Naruto, you don't have any money!" Sakura called after him.

"I don't care! You guys _have_ to have something, right?" he shouted back. I watched in amusement as both their pockets turned up empty.

"Awwww, c'mon, guys! Tell me you're not broke, too!"

"It's okay, I'll pay. I have enough for all of us," I offered. I could hear Naruto grinning. Sakura nudged me good-naturedly.

"Watch out, or you'll be poor like the rest of us in no time," she advised. I smiled.

"It's alright. Trust me, money's not exactly an issue with me."

"In that case, you and Naruto are gonna be best friends," she said quietly.

"I heard that!" he yelled, flailing a menu in his right hand. Kakashi chuckled.

"She has a point. Keep that pack of yours in sight at all times. I don't think you'll have to worry about Naruto, though. He'll be hovering around you like a fly."

"I'll remember that," I answered laughingly, walking towards where Naruto was yelling at us to walk faster.

_Oh, I'll remember that, all right,_ I thought bitterly. _A fly may hover around your head like the stupid little thing it is, but if you're good at swatting, you'll get it, no problem, and then it won't annoy you anymore, because it'll be dead._

"Thanks for offering to pay," Sakura said after we sat. "I'll make sure Naruto pays you back."

"Really?" I asked. "I mean, you don't have to."

"No, really. What are friends for?" she replied. I blinked. Friends already? Strange… but practical, in a way. Yes. It was practically strange.


	3. Chapter 3 - Sachi Ito

"_Sa… yo… mi…" _

"_Eh, Sayo-chan, what are you doing?" a young Leiko asked, poking her head into the schoolroom. There was Sayomi, sitting at the old desk, her long hair spilling out over the paper as she scribbled something down using the brush she held in her fat, four year-old fingers. Leiko walked inside curiously, having just come from the kitchen with a snack. The writer looked up curiously, and one could tell that she had been at it for quite some time now. Her fingers were stained black, and there was a large black ink smear going across her face where she had attempted to brush one of her long strands of hair out of her eyes. Leiko stared at her curiously, an onigiri in each hand, and watched in awe as her friend held up several sheets of paper filled to the brim with the same three kanji over and over again._

"_I'm writing my name!" she declared proudly, showcasing her handiwork. Leiko scurried over onto the enormous seat that Sayomi was sitting in and looked at the shapeless ink blotches adorning the calligraphy paper. _

"_Coooool…" she said with a smile. Leiko couldn't yet read kanji, but if these drawn splotches were Sayomi's name, then by gum, she would learn to read them!_

"_See?" Sayomi said, moving the papers around until she found the one that Koruna-senpai had drawn out for her. "My name means 'born at night'."_

"_Leiko began to laugh, and Sayomi flicked her in the forehead as retribution. _

"_Meh~!" the girl replied, tugging on Sayo's hair. _

"_Then shut up and listen!" Sayomi replied, pointing to the second one. "This one is more complicated than the first, but I'm almost done learning how to write it, and then the last one is the most complicated of all!"_

"_So you were born at night?" Leiko asked, scratching her head; to her, all the splotches looked the same. "How do they know you were born at night?"_

"_Who cares?" Sayomi snapped, crossing her arms. Leiko laughed, handing her the onigiri she had brought with her, and together, the girls began heading for the courtyard for a late lunch._

"And what will you be having, young lady?" the Ramen salesman asked me. I shook my head.

"I can't decide. I guess I'll just take the special," I answered. Naruto commended me on my choice, saying that it was probably the best (and most expensive) thing on the menu.

"Unfortunately, that's not always the case," Sakura said. "You won't always get the best quality for the highest price, not in this town." She smiled at me. "But Teuchi-san makes the best ramen in the world, there's no doubt about that!"

_She certainly seems nice,_ I thought, although my brother had warned me to keep an eye out for her. He said that she was too smart for her own good, and that it wouldn't take very long until she caught on to what I was trying to do, especially since everything I did resembled him in one way or another.

"So you're from the Sand Village," Kakashi said. My brother said that he would be the first to put the pieces together, but he wouldn't say or do anything to incriminate me until he had proof against me.

"I was born and raised there," I answered.

"Really? What do your parents do?" Naruto replied. My face turned red.

"Well, actually… I don't… I don't really know my parents," I answered sadly. "I was abandoned at birth on the cliffs surrounding the Hidden Sand."

"Seriously?" Sakura asked. "That's weird. I never thought anyone from the Sand would do something like that."

"The man who found me said that I was small and had a weak heart. My parents probably thought I was going to die anyways, so they left me right by the edge, possibly thinking a gust of wind would finish the job," I replied.

"You say a man found you? Who?" Kakashi asked.

"He's dead," I answered simply. No use in reminding myself why I was here. "I've been on my own for the past two months. I don't really like to talk about it."

"Then we won't make you," Naruto said as the soup was placed in front of us. I plunged my chopsticks into the noodles and began to devour it like the Akatsuki was on my heels. Everyone had barely eaten half when I placed my utensils across the top of my bowl and announced that it had been delicious.

"You're done?!" Naruto shrieked. My brother had laughingly told me that Naruto prided himself on being the fastest Ramen eater in the Village. It was the first time I had ever heard him laugh, and it was the most beautiful sound in the world. Now, seeing Naruto's disbelieving face, I remembered his laugh in my mind. It was so happy, so… normal, that I just had to laugh along.

"Yes, Naruto," I said after my giggles had subsided. "I'm always done first." My happiness faded when I realized that I had lied. When I was still in the Hidden Sand, I would anger my mentor by eating as slowly as humanly possible. But it's amazing how fast you learn to eat when your brother is an international criminal, and a single second could mean the difference between life and death. But the laughter was worth it.

After Naruto had finished sulking over his food, we all stood up and walked towards the Academy, where Sakura offered to show me a place nearby where I could stay.

"The rooms are a little small, but-" she began as we walked through the bustling streets.

"I don't care about size, as long as it's a roof over my head," I interjected. "And money's not a problem either. I've got plenty."

Sakura's eyes got frighteningly narrow.

"Oh yeah?" she asked. "Where'd you get it?"

"I worked a couple of odd jobs here and there," I answered lightly- another lie. "I've just never had the chance to spend it."

We stopped in front of a tall building. It was old compared to some of the others, but it looked sturdy and comfortable.

"Right. Well, here we are. There's only one room left, and it's right upstairs from Naruto's, so he'll be there if something happens, although I can't guarantee he'll know what to do if it does."

I smiled and we walked inside.

"Say, what's the deal between you two anyways?" I asked, remembering the one detail my brother had conveniently left out. "Sounds like you guys have known each other for a while."

"You can say that again," Sakura answered as we walked up the stairs. "We've been best friends for years, although I really hate his guts sometimes."

"Yeah," I said, grinning. "He's not very mature, is he?"

"Nope. But he's still my best friend. Him, and…" She stopped and stood for a moment, and then continued her ascent.

"And…?"

"There was another… he was more than just my friend. I actually like him. But he wasn't into me like that. He wasn't into anyone but himself," she replied quietly. I said nothing.

"Well, here's your room," Sakura said, holding the door open for me.

My first impression of it was that it was incredibly shabby. The walls would need a new coat of paint, because the current olive green was peeling off of the molding sheetrock. In the larger room, which I assumed to be the living room, was a large window that could desperately use a cleaning, and in the back were two doors leading to what would soon become my bedroom and my bathroom… given everything was in working order. The floors were dusty, but underneath the layers of grime I could tell that there was a firm sheet of quality hardwood paneling, ready to be mopped, polished, and waxed to perfection.

"It's perfect!" I squealed.

"Well, I'm glad," she answered with a smile. "Now, put your stuff down and come on. We have to introduce you to the head honchos of the Ninja Academy."

I gulped. More lying? My brother had warned me that I would have to do a lot of that once I got here. But still… it went against my nature to lie.

Half an hour later, I had on my best poker face as I watched the three people in front of me whispering secretively. I knew they were talking about me, and it was pissing me off.

"Well… she certainly does _look_ like him…" the woman commented.

"But her hair and her eyes… they're different!" the man on her right argued.

"She could've just dyed it," the woman replied.

"It's impossible to dye your eyes!"

"Well, whatever the case may be," the woman said, raising her voice to a level that everyone could her. "If what this girl says is true, then she has traveled all the way from the Land of the Wind to our village, simply to train with Kakashi. It just wouldn't be fair to turn her away, especially since we're rather… short at the moment."

Naruto placed his hand on my shoulder for moral support. I smiled at him, and noticed that his expression was rather scrutinizing. He was smiling, but I could tell that he was looking at me closely.

"My dear," the woman said, turning to me. "We have noticed a strange familiarity in your facial features."

_Uh oh…_ I thought. _This isn't good. My brother said they'd fall for it, but now I'm not so sure. Then again, my brother's always right, so I should have nothing to fear. Still…_

"Lucky for you," she continued, "we do only believe this to be a coincidence."

I exhaled. Maybe they weren't on to me yet.

"However, in order to confirm that our suspicions are nothing more that paranoia, we have to ask you a question. If we feel that you are telling the truth, we will let you stay. If not, we will have to hand you over to the ANBU."

I gulped. _The_ ANBU? The infamous group of intelligence agents? If that's the case then… I'd just have to lie like my life depended on it… which it did.

"Are you in any way familiarized with the name… Uchiha?"

_Of course, you stupid woman! It's the reason why I'm here,_ I thought bitterly. But I couldn't say that, or else I would have to deal with the ANBU, and that was all the way at the bottom of my To-do List. I wouldn't say anything, of course. But the ANBU was rumored to be brutal when it came to making people talk. They would squeeze me until I revealed the fact that I was sent to Konohagakure to make sure that Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and Hatake Kakashi never, _ever_ got in our way again. Of course, I had my own, personal reasons for wanting Naruto dead, and the entire plan was my idea anyways considering I fully intended on involving the Akatsuki, but they would take care of themselves eventually.

For now, I had to fight against my nature one last time.

And I had to do it for him.

My twin.

My Sasuke.

**Déjà-vu**

"_Kyaa!"_

_The clang of kunai striking katana rang out across the courtyard as Sayomi and Leiko ensued their daily training. Sparks flew as the girls hacked and slashed at each other in an effort to win their sparring match. Whoever won would break the tie and become the leader. The wins so far were tied; Leiko and Sayomi had both won thirty-eight matches against each other, and this one was probably one of the most intense ones they'd fought in a while. _

"_What'sa matter, Lei-chan?" Sayomi sneered, her face contorted in contempt and teasing, and her voice scattered from being out of breath. "Tired already? Or… do you think you can… take me on?"_

"_Tired?" Leiko replied with a sweaty grin. "I don't even… know what that means… Sayo-chan…"_

"_Bet you're having a hard time… keeping up… with those short legs of yours," Sayomi replied provocatively. "You sure you don't wanna… call it quits?"_

"_Are you kidding me?" Leiko replied, wiping her brow before she lunged at Sayomi, who darted out of the way quickly. "At least I don't… let the whole world… see what's under my skirt." _

"_You take that back, shrimp!" Sayomi screamed as they lunged for each other. Their weapons clashed and they sprang in opposite directions. _

"_Forget it, trollop!" Leiko answered, rearing her fists back in a punch. Sayomi blocked the blow easily, flipping out of the way rather than reciprocating with a kick. She folded her hands together in front of her. _

"_Wind Style: Flat Wind Jutsu!" she shouted, holding her hands up with her palms facing out, as though she were leaning her weight against something solid and heavy. Immediately, a wind erupted from her palms. It was enormous, strong, flat, and radiated to the sides in the shape of a triangle. _

"_Woah~!" Leiko yelped as she was blown off the edge of the cliff. Ramming her katana into the rock face, she screeched to a halt, sparks raining down onto her forehead protector. She hung there, attempting to get a foothold, when Sayomi appeared at the top of the cliff and grinned, her silhouette blocking the sunlight as she looked down._

"_I win," she said simply, and began to walk off. _

"_Hey, that's not fair!" Leiko protested. "I helped you with that jutsu. Hey… get back here! You can't just leave me here! Sayomi? SAYOMI!"_

_Sayomi chuckled to herself. Leiko was a good ninja. She'd find a way to get back up by herself. _

"Oh, come on, Lady Tsunade!" I said disbelievingly. "What kind of question is that? Sachi's not an Uchiha! I mean, look at her!"

"Naruto has a point, M'Lady," Sakura said pleasantly. I grinned. Finally, someone was agreeing with me! I mean, this whole interrogation thing was starting to get on my nerves!

"You're both correct. Still, as a matter of procedure, I have to ask her that question. It's just too close a call," Lady Tsunade answered. I pouted.

"Trust me, I would know if a girl walked in looking like Sasu-"

"No," Sachi answered firmly, throwing me a weird look. "I've never been affiliated with them."

"And yet, you share a strange resemblance with the single Uchiha we are the most familiar, and the most occupied with. Don't you find that strange?"

"It may be strange," Sachi answered, "But I can assure you that it's nothing more than a coincidence. How could I be an Uchiha? Unless I'm mistaken, only two survived the Great Massacre… two brothers. No one has seen them in a while. It's said that one of them remained here… but as a general rule, I and those I work with try to stay out of international matters that are not of our concern."

"I think she's alright," Iruka-sensei said. I smiled. He liked her, I could tell. Tsunade glared at each of us for a moment before finally closing her eyes and resting her face behind her eyes in defeat.

"Then we will let her stay," she replied quietly. "But if I hear anybad reports, any complaints, if I catch even so much as a _hint _of suspicious activity, you're out. Got it?"

Sachi nodded obediently. "Yes, Lord Hokage. I will do my best to obey all rules."

"You'd better," she replied firmly. "This isn't exactly something that happens every day. Now, Kakashi… since she is to be on your team, you will test her tonight and see how much she knows, then report back to me. But… for now… you four best take a break. Dismissed."

I spun around quickly and headed towards the door the minute that she let us out.

"Come _on_ you guys!" I said, hustling them out. Why were they moving so slowly? Didn't they know that Amaguriama closes at sundown?

"What _is_ it with you?" Sakura asked, yipping like one of those tiny, annoying dogs. "Why can't you stay in one place for longer than…"

_Blah blah blah, _I thought. Her nagging began to fade as I took a closer look at Sachi. She was smiling a little, her cheekbones raised happily. I was surprised Sakura didn't hate her yet. Sachi was definitely prettier, but I would never say it to Sakura's face. Sakura was too muscle-y. Sachi actually looked like a girl. Not to mention that she talked with a high-pitched voice that made her sound like a little kid…

The first thing I did when I got to my room was sleep. I had a weird dream, where cups of Instant Ramen were dancing around my room, but I woke up just as they were about to eat me alive. The sun was setting, and I was going to be late to the "exam", where Sachi had to prove her skills as a chūnin. But first…

… candy!

Sakura had left a note on the door telling us where we'd be fighting. It was in the forest by the river, where Sakura and I had met up to be tested the last time.

I arrived, panting and sweating.

"You're late," Sakura commented. "What's your excuse?"

"I overslept…" I replied, my face red from embarrassment.

"Wow. _That's _original," Sachi said from the tree behind me. I yelped, jumping backwards and ramming right into Sakura's head.

"Watch it, you dweeb!" she yelled, rubbing her enormous forehead.

"Well, _excuse_ me, billboard brow!" I retorted angrily.

"If you weren't so damn clumsy…!"

"And if you weren't so damn touchy…!"

Sachi jumped down from her perch and walked over.

"A little maturity, please?" she interjected, pushing between us. "You're acting like five year-olds."

_Well, no one asked you!_ I thought, angry that she had stopped me.

"I don't get why _I_ always have to be the mature one!" I argued. Sachi stopped walking and stretched her arms towards the sky, her white wrist bindings shining in the moonlight.

She was wearing a beige sleeveless flack vest over a burgundy boat neck shirt with billowing sleeves. The vest was button-down, and it had a scroll pocket on the front that looked big enough for two scrolls. Her shirt looked like it was made from some kind of silky stuff, but it was too far away to tell. It seemed a little fancy for fighting, though. Then again, her beige and black miniskirt offered a… nice view.

At first glance, it looked like she was barefooted, but I looked closer and realized that she had on teeny little things that could barely be called sandals. The sole looked thin as paper, and fragile leather straps (tied together in various places) held the whole shoe together. But everything aside, her long, slender legs made up for everything else. In other words, Sachi was what I would call a perfect template for my infamous _Sexy no-Jutsu_…

"What are you talking about, Naruto?" Sakura asked, putting her hands on her hips. "Everyone knows that _I'm_ the mature one in this relationship."

"So now you two have a relationship? This is getting better and better," Sachi said smugly, bending down to touch her toes, her skirt riding up to a very… un-ladylike place.

"Don't you have a pair of shorts or something…?" I mumbled, turning away. Sakura grinned at my embarrassment.

"Hey, Sachi!" she said. I willed her to shut up. I was betting on this being payback for the comment I had made about her forehead.

"Yeah?" she asked, bending backwards in some perverted kind of bridge. She grinned at my horrified face, then stood straight again.

"Why's your skirt so short?" Sakura asked innocently. I scowled at her, and I knew she was laughing at me somewhere, deep inside that evil soul of hers.

"Oh, that's easy," she replied, bending over to touch her right foot. "Since I lived in the desert, I preferred a short skirt… but only because I'm always hot."

"You can say that again…" I mumbled.

"Huh?" she asked, switching to her right leg.

_Damn me and my big mouth!_ I thought exasperatedly. _Why can't I ever shut up?_

Suddenly, there was a rustling in the bushes behind us. Sachi whirled around, kunai in hand, ready to defend before I could even react. I just stared at her, analyzing the determined, fearless expression on her face, and wondering how the hell she was able to reach into her pack, pull out a kunai, turn around, and put on a face in less than half a second.

_She's fast…_ I thought. _Faster than Sasuke, even…_

Suddenly, she stood right again and smiled, folding her hands in front of her and bowing to something I couldn't see.

"Konbanwa, Kakashi-sensei," she said graciously. "You're late."

"You'll get used to it," Sakura commented as Kakashi-sensei walked past, holding his favorite book.

"What, no bells today, Sensei?" I asked. "Or are you already up to the last chapter?"

Kakashi slammed his book shut and looked at me in the same calm, nonchalant way he looked at everyone else.

"I assumed you two already figured out the jist of it. And, since the point of this is for you to learn from each other," he answered, staring pointedly at Sachi, "I figured I should switch it up and make you fight against our new teammate while I… er… watch."

"But… Kakashi-sensei… isn't two against one a little unfair?" Sakura asked.

"Shut up, Sakura. No one asked you about what you thought was fair," I huffed.

"Why you little-"

"Fine," he said, cutting her off. "Now that you two are done making Sachi do a peep show, I wouldn't mind getting started."

Sachi looked at me in dismay. I immediately began defending myself, even though I knew it only made me look guiltier than I already did.

"I didn't! I was… and then Sakura, she… but I never…and I-I couldn't I just…" I stammered.

"Whatever," Sachi answered, cutting me off.

"Great going, genius," Sakura commented, and walked past me. I glared at her, but followed her lead anyway.

"Now then," Kakashi continued, turning towards Sachi. "I have to fill out this stupid report about you, and it would really help if you knew what I was looking for, so that we can all go home and sleep as quickly as possible. What I'm actually supposed to look for while you battle my students is whether or not you're able to…"

As Kakashi-sensei rattled off all the things that Sachi had to do, I took the chance to get a closer look at her. I wasn't really able to focus on anything while we were leaving Lady Tsunade, considering that Sakura was talking my ears off.

Sachi had a pale, porcelain skin tone with a gentle, rosy undertone, and her face was sharp and angular. Her cheeks rose a little when she smiled, and she had elegantly soft, long eyelashes. Her hair was light brown (almost blond, actually), and it hung down a little past her shoulders. Her bangs were cut so that her left eye was completely covered, but her right eye was out in the open. It fell over her headband, where she proudly displayed the symbol of the Sand Village. But her eyes in particular were eccentric. They reflected in the darkness, like the eyes of a cat. I knew they were gray from what I saw in the daylight, but I didn't notice just how gray they were until now. They were pretty… in a… weird… kind of… way… They didn't seem to match the rest of her, though. Everything about her screamed cuteness. But those eyes… they were just as cute as everything else when the sun was out. But at night… they were creepy.

She stared at us intently, brushing a strand of hair out of her open eye. Her hand was slender and pointed at the tip, almost as if she didn't use her hands to fight.

"Do you understand?" Kakashi-sensei asked. Sachi nodded, smiling.

"I don't think you'll need that," I said as she picked up her bag.

"I like having it with me," she replied, slinging it over her shoulder and almost hitting me in the face with it. I ducked, standing back up angrily.

"Hey, watch it! Be careful with that thing!" I yelled angrily.

She rolled her eyes. "You're such a baby."

"Yeah, Naruto. Not everyone has to carry their weapons around in their pockets like you do," Sakura said matter-of-factly. I glared at her. Who did she think she was? Acting like she was the queen of high intelligence or something! Just because she was good at medicine didn't give her the right to act like she was all that. I mean, she was always jerky to me, even after I came back from training away from home. But now that Sachi was on our team, it's gotten worse! This Sachi person wasn't even on the team for a day, and Sakura's already acting all weird… not to mention that Sachi seemed weirdly attracted to me, heh…

"Pay attention, Naruto!" Sakura hissed as Kakashi stepped behind us.

"Alright then," he said. "Let's begin."


	4. Chapter 4 - Deja-vu

"_Kyaa!"_

_The clang of kunai striking katana rang out across the courtyard as Sayomi and Leiko ensued their daily training. Sparks flew as the girls hacked and slashed at each other in an effort to win their sparring match. Whoever won would break the tie and become the leader. The wins so far were tied; Leiko and Sayomi had both won thirty-eight matches against each other, and this one was probably one of the most intense ones they'd fought in a while. _

"_What'sa matter, Lei-chan?" Sayomi sneered, her face contorted in contempt and teasing, and her voice scattered from being out of breath. "Tired already? Or… do you think you can… take me on?"_

"_Tired?" Leiko replied with a sweaty grin. "I don't even… know what that means… Sayo-chan…"_

"_Bet you're having a hard time… keeping up… with those short legs of yours," Sayomi replied provocatively. "You sure you don't wanna… call it quits?"_

"_Are you kidding me?" Leiko replied, wiping her brow before she lunged at Sayomi, who darted out of the way quickly. "At least I don't… let the whole world… see what's under my skirt." _

"_You take that back, shrimp!" Sayomi screamed as they lunged for each other. Their weapons clashed and they sprang in opposite directions. _

"_Forget it, trollop!" Leiko answered, rearing her fists back in a punch. Sayomi blocked the blow easily, flipping out of the way rather than reciprocating with a kick. She folded her hands together in front of her. _

"_Wind Style: Flat Wind Jutsu!" she shouted, holding her hands up with her palms facing out, as though she were leaning her weight against something solid and heavy. Immediately, a wind erupted from her palms. It was enormous, strong, flat, and radiated to the sides in the shape of a triangle. _

"_Woah~!" Leiko yelped as she was blown off the edge of the cliff. Ramming her katana into the rock face, she screeched to a halt, sparks raining down onto her forehead protector. She hung there, attempting to get a foothold, when Sayomi appeared at the top of the cliff and grinned, her silhouette blocking the sunlight as she looked down._

"_I win," she said simply, and began to walk off. _

"_Hey, that's not fair!" Leiko protested. "I helped you with that jutsu. Hey… get back here! You can't just leave me here! Sayomi? SAYOMI!"_

_Sayomi chuckled to herself. Leiko was a good ninja. She'd find a way to get back up by herself. _

"Oh, come on, Lady Tsunade!" I said disbelievingly. "What kind of question is that? Sachi's not an Uchiha! I mean, look at her!"

"Naruto has a point, M'Lady," Sakura said pleasantly. I grinned. Finally, someone was agreeing with me! I mean, this whole interrogation thing was starting to get on my nerves!

"You're both correct. Still, as a matter of procedure, I have to ask her that question. It's just too close a call," Lady Tsunade answered. I pouted.

"Trust me, I would know if a girl walked in looking like Sasu-"

"No," Sachi answered firmly, throwing me a weird look. "I've never been affiliated with them."

"And yet, you share a strange resemblance with the single Uchiha we are the most familiar, and the most occupied with. Don't you find that strange?"

"It may be strange," Sachi answered, "But I can assure you that it's nothing more than a coincidence. How could I be an Uchiha? Unless I'm mistaken, only two survived the Great Massacre… two brothers. No one has seen them in a while. It's said that one of them remained here… but as a general rule, I and those I work with try to stay out of international matters that are not of our concern."

"I think she's alright," Iruka-sensei said. I smiled. He liked her, I could tell. Tsunade glared at each of us for a moment before finally closing her eyes and resting her face behind her eyes in defeat.

"Then we will let her stay," she replied quietly. "But if I hear anybad reports, any complaints, if I catch even so much as a _hint _of suspicious activity, you're out. Got it?"

Sachi nodded obediently. "Yes, Lord Hokage. I will do my best to obey all rules."

"You'd better," she replied firmly. "This isn't exactly something that happens every day. Now, Kakashi… since she is to be on your team, you will test her tonight and see how much she knows, then report back to me. But… for now… you four best take a break. Dismissed."

I spun around quickly and headed towards the door the minute that she let us out.

"Come _on_ you guys!" I said, hustling them out. Why were they moving so slowly? Didn't they know that Amaguriama closes at sundown?

"What _is_ it with you?" Sakura asked, yipping like one of those tiny, annoying dogs. "Why can't you stay in one place for longer than…"

_Blah blah blah, _I thought. Her nagging began to fade as I took a closer look at Sachi. She was smiling a little, her cheekbones raised happily. I was surprised Sakura didn't hate her yet. Sachi was definitely prettier, but I would never say it to Sakura's face. Sakura was too muscle-y. Sachi actually looked like a girl. Not to mention that she talked with a high-pitched voice that made her sound like a little kid…

The first thing I did when I got to my room was sleep. I had a weird dream, where cups of Instant Ramen were dancing around my room, but I woke up just as they were about to eat me alive. The sun was setting, and I was going to be late to the "exam", where Sachi had to prove her skills as a chūnin. But first…

… candy!

[-]

Sakura had left a note on the door telling us where we'd be fighting. It was in the forest by the river, where Sakura and I had met up to be tested the last time.

I arrived, panting and sweating.

"You're late," Sakura commented. "What's your excuse?"

"I overslept…" I replied, my face red from embarrassment.

"Wow. _That's _original," Sachi said from the tree behind me. I yelped, jumping backwards and ramming right into Sakura's head.

"Watch it, you dweeb!" she yelled, rubbing her enormous forehead.

"Well, _excuse_ me, billboard brow!" I retorted angrily.

"If you weren't so damn clumsy…!"

"And if you weren't so damn touchy…!"

Sachi jumped down from her perch and walked over.

"A little maturity, please?" she interjected, pushing between us. "You're acting like five year-olds."

_Well, no one asked you!_ I thought, angry that she had stopped me.

"I don't get why _I_ always have to be the mature one!" I argued. Sachi stopped walking and stretched her arms towards the sky, her white wrist bindings shining in the moonlight.

She was wearing a beige sleeveless flack vest over a burgundy boat neck shirt with billowing sleeves. The vest was button-down, and it had a scroll pocket on the front that looked big enough for two scrolls. Her shirt looked like it was made from some kind of silky stuff, but it was too far away to tell. It seemed a little fancy for fighting, though. Then again, her beige and black miniskirt offered a… nice view.

At first glance, it looked like she was barefooted, but I looked closer and realized that she had on teeny little things that could barely be called sandals. The sole looked thin as paper, and fragile leather straps (tied together in various places) held the whole shoe together. But everything aside, her long, slender legs made up for everything else. In other words, Sachi was what I would call a perfect template for my infamous _Sexy no-Jutsu_…

"What are you talking about, Naruto?" Sakura asked, putting her hands on her hips. "Everyone knows that _I'm_ the mature one in this relationship."

"So now you two have a relationship? This is getting better and better," Sachi said smugly, bending down to touch her toes, her skirt riding up to a very… un-ladylike place.

"Don't you have a pair of shorts or something…?" I mumbled, turning away. Sakura grinned at my embarrassment.

"Hey, Sachi!" she said. I willed her to shut up. I was betting on this being payback for the comment I had made about her forehead.

"Yeah?" she asked, bending backwards in some perverted kind of bridge. She grinned at my horrified face, then stood straight again.

"Why's your skirt so short?" Sakura asked innocently. I scowled at her, and I knew she was laughing at me somewhere, deep inside that evil soul of hers.

"Oh, that's easy," she replied, bending over to touch her right foot. "Since I lived in the desert, I preferred a short skirt… but only because I'm always hot."

"You can say that again…" I mumbled.

"Huh?" she asked, switching to her right leg.

_Damn me and my big mouth!_ I thought exasperatedly. _Why can't I ever shut up?_

Suddenly, there was a rustling in the bushes behind us. Sachi whirled around, kunai in hand, ready to defend before I could even react. I just stared at her, analyzing the determined, fearless expression on her face, and wondering how the hell she was able to reach into her pack, pull out a kunai, turn around, and put on a face in less than half a second.

_She's fast…_ I thought. _Faster than Sasuke, even…_

Suddenly, she stood right again and smiled, folding her hands in front of her and bowing to something I couldn't see.

"Konbanwa, Kakashi-sensei," she said graciously. "You're late."

"You'll get used to it," Sakura commented as Kakashi-sensei walked past, holding his favorite book.

"What, no bells today, Sensei?" I asked. "Or are you already up to the last chapter?"

Kakashi slammed his book shut and looked at me in the same calm, nonchalant way he looked at everyone else.

"I assumed you two already figured out the jist of it. And, since the point of this is for you to learn from each other," he answered, staring pointedly at Sachi, "I figured I should switch it up and make you fight against our new teammate while I… er… watch."

"But… Kakashi-sensei… isn't two against one a little unfair?" Sakura asked.

"Shut up, Sakura. No one asked you about what you thought was fair," I huffed.

"Why you little-"

"Fine," he said, cutting her off. "Now that you two are done making Sachi do a peep show, I wouldn't mind getting started."

Sachi looked at me in dismay. I immediately began defending myself, even though I knew it only made me look guiltier than I already did.

"I didn't! I was… and then Sakura, she… but I never…and I-I couldn't I just…" I stammered.

"Whatever," Sachi answered, cutting me off.

"Great going, genius," Sakura commented, and walked past me. I glared at her, but followed her lead anyway.

"Now then," Kakashi continued, turning towards Sachi. "I have to fill out this stupid report about you, and it would really help if you knew what I was looking for, so that we can all go home and sleep as quickly as possible. What I'm actually supposed to look for while you battle my students is whether or not you're able to…"

As Kakashi-sensei rattled off all the things that Sachi had to do, I took the chance to get a closer look at her. I wasn't really able to focus on anything while we were leaving Lady Tsunade, considering that Sakura was talking my ears off.

Sachi had a pale, porcelain skin tone with a gentle, rosy undertone, and her face was sharp and angular. Her cheeks rose a little when she smiled, and she had elegantly soft, long eyelashes. Her hair was light brown (almost blond, actually), and it hung down a little past her shoulders. Her bangs were cut so that her left eye was completely covered, but her right eye was out in the open. It fell over her headband, where she proudly displayed the symbol of the Sand Village. But her eyes in particular were eccentric. They reflected in the darkness, like the eyes of a cat. I knew they were gray from what I saw in the daylight, but I didn't notice just how gray they were until now. They were pretty… in a… weird… kind of… way… They didn't seem to match the rest of her, though. Everything about her screamed cuteness. But those eyes… they were just as cute as everything else when the sun was out. But at night… they were creepy.

She stared at us intently, brushing a strand of hair out of her open eye. Her hand was slender and pointed at the tip, almost as if she didn't use her hands to fight.

"Do you understand?" Kakashi-sensei asked. Sachi nodded, smiling.

"I don't think you'll need that," I said as she picked up her bag.

"I like having it with me," she replied, slinging it over her shoulder and almost hitting me in the face with it. I ducked, standing back up angrily.

"Hey, watch it! Be careful with that thing!" I yelled angrily.

She rolled her eyes. "You're such a baby."

"Yeah, Naruto. Not everyone has to carry their weapons around in their pockets like you do," Sakura said matter-of-factly. I glared at her. Who did she think she was? Acting like she was the queen of high intelligence or something! Just because she was good at medicine didn't give her the right to act like she was all that. I mean, she was always jerky to me, even after I came back from training away from home. But now that Sachi was on our team, it's gotten worse! This Sachi person wasn't even on the team for a day, and Sakura's already acting all weird… not to mention that Sachi seemed weirdly attracted to me, heh…

"Pay attention, Naruto!" Sakura hissed as Kakashi stepped behind us.

"Alright then," he said. "Let's begin."


	5. Chapter 5 - Lord Gaara

"_Ha, ha, look at the little freak's kid!"_

_Sayomi's head spun around at the sound of the older boys' laughter, and the bells on her little basket jingled lightly as she craned her neck to see where the taunting jeers were coming from. She heard a muffled yelp and her eyes widened as she jerked into motion, her legs automatically leading to the sound of the dispute. Hiding cleverly in the shadows of the small alley, she peeked around the corner and spied a young boy of about her age, surrounded by a group of teasing genin, who all seemed to be focused on the huddled, cowering mass that crouched on the ground, his fat fingers wrapped around the limp arms of his teddy bear. Sayomi thought about her own doll, lying inanimately in her basket, and grit her teeth angrily. _

"_Freak's kid, freak's kid!" they chanted, pointing their grubby hands at his face. One boy, seemingly the leader, swiped his foot to the side and kicked a cloud of dust into the boy's face. The boy began to cough miserably, and Sayomi balled her fists at her side. She dropped her basket and stomped out from her hiding place, right up to the evil perpetrator who dared take advantage of the seemingly helpless redhead. Taking a deep breath, she tapped him on the shoulder. _

"_Excuse me," she said, her six year-old voice high-pitched and squeaky compared to their mischievous pre-teen speech. The boy turned around, his face annoyed at the interruption to his game. Smiling sweetly, Sayomi waved her hand back and forth… and promptly proceeded to land a forceful kick between his legs. _

_The boy howled in agony as everything fell silent, and Sayomi stood rooted to her spot, unable to move, or save herself, in that case. The boy recomposed himself, glaring at her before shouting, "Get her, you idiots!" Sayomi yelped, and spun in the other direction, towards the main street. _

_The boys were gaining on her quickly when she stumbled, flying headfirst into the dust. She covered her head instinctively, since the common practice those days was a hefty kick in the skull as punishment for disobedience amongst children. However, instead of a sharp pain, she suddenly heard distressed cries for help behind her. Not daring to turn around as she heard a series of crashes and screeches, she waited until everything was silent to open her eyes and look around. The boys who had been chasing her where nowhere in sight, and Sayomi sighed heavily in relief, until she suddenly remembered the potential danger that she might have been in. After all… what had scared them away? She turned her head back quickly, her heart beginning to pound. What if it was still here? What if… what if it was coming to get her?_

_She jumped up, ready to break into a run when she noticed that she wasn't alone in the backwater street. The little redhead, the one that had been the subject of the teasing before, was standing by the alley where she had first seen him, his eyes bleary and his face covered in gravel and sand. Teddy still in hand, he rubbed his nose, effectively wiping his snot on his sleeve as he looked at her. Shocked that he was alright, Sayomi ran towards him, halfway out of breath by the time that she got there. _

"_Hey!" she shouted. "Hey you, are you alright?" He looked taken aback that she had come so near him, and she raised an eyebrow. _

"_Y-you aren't afraid?" he asked shakily. "You aren't afraid of me after what I did to them?"_

_Sayomi paused. So it was… him? He had chased them off? The girl grinned widely. _

"_Afraid? Why would I be afraid? You saved my life!" she said cheerfully. "Thanks a lot!" The boy still looked rather confused, so Sayomi asked, "What'sa matter?"_

_The boy swallowed. "Why… did you come? Why did you help me?"_

_Now it was Sayomi's turn to be confused. "Why not?" she asked, brushing a strand of hair out of her eyes. "Don't we all have to look out for each other? I mean, I've seen you around a couple of times before… I bet you would've done the same for me, right?"_

_The boy nodded, pausing for a moment. "Hey, um… what's your name?"_

"_Sayomi Sabito~!" the girl twittered, twirling around. "Pleasure to meet you um… uh…"_

_The boy smiled. "My name's—"_

"_GAARA!"_

_Both kids jumped as one of the Kazekage's bodyguards ran up to them. Rudely pushing Sayomi out of his way, he grabbed Gaara's hand and began tugging him to the main road._

"_I've been looking all over for you, you little brat! And when I do find you, you're talking to some street filth, Raggedy-Anne little orphan. I don't ever want to see you with her again!"_

"_B-but… Sayomi's my friend!" Gaara protested, tugging at the man's hand. _

"_Bah!" the guard spat, ignoring the boy's fighting as they continued on towards the Kazekage tower. "Don't be ridiculous Gaara… you don't have any friends."_

_Sayomi sat up from where she had been pushed down to the ground, rubbing her head with a childish grimace. Seeing her new friend being dragged away, she waved her arm cheerfully in the air, her mind still too young to realize how doomed their friendship was destined to be. He looked meekly over his shoulder, suddenly feeling the urge to waggle his fingers in her direction as she called, "Okay, Gaara! See you again soon!"_

_**A few hours later…**_

At this point, my apartment was sparsely furnished. Already there had been a bedframe and mattress, for which I had already bought a set of cream-colored sheets, and a pillow and blanket which Sakura's mother had been kind enough to donate from their personal storage in the attic. I had gotten a few things from them, actually; I had gotten a set of matching tables and chairs, a small dresser, and an armchair… It wasn't much, but it would do until I went to the city and spent some of my money. I arrived in my room after the short walk home, and immediately went for the small dresser that stood solemnly in the corner.

The fight had been generally uneventful. Thanks to my rather unusual skill at what Kakashi-sensei had called 'pep-talk', Naruto had been quick to lose his temper, and I was able to beat him and Sakura with minimal effort. Of course, I used my usual tactic (a tactic that my brother had described as weak and cowardly) of running and evading them, leading them through difficult passageways and underbrush until they were out of breath enough for me to beat them. It was fun, really, because I had genjutsu to lead them on while I sat comfortably in a tree and watched the entire thing unfold. Kakashi-sensei hadn't been fooled… while the other two walked in circles for over an hour, we sat in a tree and had an in depth conversation about the trifles in  
_Icha Icha, _particularly in the more recent chapters.

I reached into my bag and pulled out a few things I had acquired during my travels. I will admit that I had quite the talent as a thief, considering that my most predominant skill was speed, and that I was very good at… or rather… I was able to "disappear" whenever things got too difficult. I never really lost the habit, which is probably why Sakura was getting so annoyed with me during our battle. I didn't really like to be seen, especially if it put me in danger. I was always in the background, which is what I prefer… although there are people like my brother that like to give me a leading role.

Amongst a few other things, I pulled out a short, dark blue nightdress that I liked to wear to bed. I slipped it on quietly, the soft fabric gliding over my skin with ease. Then again, it wasn't really _my_ skin, now was it? It was her skin. Sachi's skin. My skin had more of an olive undertone, not like this rosy current that mixed with the color of _this_ skin. It matched the rest of my rather dampened demeanor, a demeanor which had been a very recent development. I knew my brother was responsible. After all, who else could change me the way he had? Back when I still lived at home, I was cheerful. I laughed at everything, made jokes even in serious situations… perhaps not to the extreme to which I do to hide my identity from my team, but very close. My mentor would scold me for my unbefitting levity during training sessions, when I preferred to do other things rather that practice (which is possibly why my taijutsu never got any better).

Yūra-sensei was a very interesting man. He was always the withdrawn, serious type. Given, I annoyed him at times, but he was really the only person I had who actually cared about me. Before my friends, before the orphanage, before Gaara… before everything, he was there. He saved my life, after all.

My head fell heavily onto the pillow, and I could hear Naruto snoring through the thin wall. It really didn't take anything to get him to sleep, did it? Even I had my rituals, regardless of the fact that I was just about ready to give up and fall asleep where I stood.

Naruto.

Older Brother Itachi had used Yūra-sensei as a body double to fight against Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi, and Lady Chiyo (the old hag!), and Naruto had killed him using his infamous Rasengan. The authorities told me afterwards that Yūra-sensei was a sleeper agent that worked for Sasori, the infamous puppet master, that died alongside his idiot grandmother (I never liked that woman; she always seemed suspicious to me). They thought I was stupid, the way I acted. I _was_ stupid, getting upset and releasing my Sharingan like that. But I knew his secret the whole time; it was nothing new to me. It was more than that, though… The fact that the Akatsuki had kidnapped - and killed - Gaara had been a direct blow to my already weak heart. I never thought I would recover from the emotional assault which had affected me so, although… I did, of course. If anything, it helped me to rediscover my true purpose in life.

Nevertheless, as my eyes began to close, I felt the repressed memories resurfacing through the nadir of my subconscious like little bubbles, or a boiling pot, or a restless heartbeat. Miniscule, and unstoppable.

[-]

"Thank you, Koruna-sensei," I said, bowing slightly. Koruna-sensei grunted unintelligibly and crossed her arms, her heavy maternal figure bouncing under the weight of her frustrated gesture.

"Don't thank me," she answered gruffly. "Thank your boy toy out there, Mr. I'm-too-good-to-come-into-the-orphanage. He's the one who got you the job. Don't forget who gave you the skills to keep it though, got that?"

"Of course, Koruna-sensei. Thank you," I replied, bowing again.

"Stop being so damn polite all the time!" she snapped, her eyes moistening. "It's almost making me sad to see you go."

"I'll do my best," I answered, picking up my bag and waving to the row of shabby children of various ages standing behind the husky woman who had acted as my mother for the past fifteen years. They called out various cries of goodbye and good luck. Some were crying, while others stared at me with stone-faced determination. The youngest of the bunch were still infants, held by the oldest. I obviously wasn't the first to leave and head out to the world; I was once one of the dirty kids who waved goodbye to people I would probably never see again. But I was too old now; Koruna no longer had a place for me.

I stepped out into the sunshine and looked upon the faces of the two people I knew best. Leiko, my best friend for all of my life, ran and embraced me, momentarily leaning her katana against the wood of the old building.

"I don't know what I'm gonna do without you, Sayo-chan!" she wailed, squeezing me tightly.

"You'll be fine, Leiko. Koruna already said that you could stay and help her with the littlies!" I answered, gently prying her off of me.

"Great, so I get to be a babysitter all my life," she mumbled sarcastically.

"You know that's not true!" I protested, nodding towards her weapon. "You're the best one around with that sword! And besides, it's not like I'm living the glamour life. I'm just a servant… maid… whatever."

"But you get to schmooze with the Lord Kazekage!" she whined. I smiled empathetically. Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"I don't think she'll be schmoozing with anyone," Kankuro said, grinning obnoxiously. I turned around and stared into his small, hard eyes with baited affection.

"Are you two having a moment?" Leiko asked, breaking the silence.

"When are we ever not?" Kankuro answered before I could say anything. Leiko smiled.

"I guess you're right. But I'd suggest you be careful, Kankuro. They say Gaara is a piece of work when it comes to the ladies," she teased. He laughed, pulling me to him. I held his hand eagerly.

"I don't think I'll have to worry about that," he answered, pulling me down the road. I followed him cheerfully. Leiko motioned to follow me, but I heard Koruna's loud voice yelling out the door.

"LEIKO! Quit swingin' that sword around and get your ass in here! The baby's HUNGRY!"

Leiko shrugged nonchalantly.

"That's my cue!" she said. "Bye, Sayomi! Come visit whenever you can!"

"I will!" I answered. "I definitely will!"

I never did.

It was horrible! There was always something to do! Dishes to wash, clothes to press, people to feed… not to mention that I was the best cook that the house of the Kazekage had ever seen, so I was automatically given the assignment to run to the stove whenever someone called for a snack or a meal. The only thing I didn't get to do was clean; I wasn't allowed entrance to any of the bedrooms. Even when personally delivering one thing or another, I was required to wait on the first floor until someone accepted my package.

Being the unofficial top chef, however, had its advantages. I had an entire kitchen filled with things I could practice on. Dishes to test out, utensils to get familiarized with… my cooking went from good to great, so that even the senior advisors asked my opinion before trying something new. Of course, everything was strictly backwards and secretive, so that to those who didn't know me, I was just another servant.

Working so close to highly esteemed people gave me insight to a whole new world. Here, everything was different. I was surrounded by apathy, by people who looked at me like I was invisible. I was content, in a sense, that my uniform matched that of countless others, because if anything went wrong, I wouldn't be singled out. And yet… whenever I trudged up to my budget room, where I was finally alone instead of being part of a swarm of identical bees, I longed for my individuality again, like a child longs for its blanket, or some other sappy metaphor like that.

Every morning, it was the same. Wake up, wash and get dressed, reenter the world of cooking and taking orders, collect pay, go upstairs, eat, sleep. It was like an endless repetitive cycle.

Until I got promoted.

At first, I couldn't believe it. It wasn't even that the promotion was so great. I got moved up from "person who does menial tasks and dirty work" to "person who actually leaves the first floor and personally delivers things to important people who don't give a crap about anything but their jobs". But just the idea of someone acknowledging my presence filled me with pride. Only moments after receiving the news, I was running faster than I had ever needed to before, sprinting to my mentor's house to tell him the news. He congratulated me and commended me on my run, but only after I had virtually collapsed in front of him.

Then he laughed at me and served me tea.

I swallowed nervously. It was only my third day on the new job and I had already received an assignment to deliver food to Lord Gaara himself. I had put extra care into this particular platter; I wouldn't want to give the most powerful man in the Land of Wind any reason to dislike me. I tried to calm myself by remembering that he was only Kankuro's younger brother, and that we had been friends (in a way) for a very long time, but it wasn't helping even the slightest bit.

I knocked on the door slowly. There was no answer, so I knocked again.

"L-Lord Gaara?" I asked hesitantly. "I have come with the dish you requested earlier."

There was not even the slightest sound. Was this even the right room? Maybe I had made a mistake…

_No_, I decided, taking note of the slightly more elaborate décor around the doorframe. _This is definitely the one_.

The door was open slightly, so that I could spy a small table standing right by the door. Maybe I could open the door quietly and slide the tray onto it without anyone noticing…?

Reaching out, I slid it open just enough so that I could squeeze my head in. The table was farther than assumed, so this may prove to be harder than I had originally calculated. Using my butt as leverage, I slid it open even farther and slipped inside silently. Who would have ever thought that my training as a kunoichi would come in handy in a situation like this? Just as I was about to set the tray onto the table, a voice spoke behind me.

"What are you doing?"

I yelped and the tray clattered down dangerously. Luckily, none of the food was disturbed, but for a bit of tea that had spilled on impact. I whirled around. Lord Gaara was staring at me curiously.

"Lord Gaara!" I said, grinning artificially. I could feel my cheeks reddening as I scratched the back of my head sheepishly. I silently checked myself. After all, such disrespect couldn't be tolerated in the presence of the Kazekage! "How nice to see you again! I was just… umm… I was just delivering your food!"

It had been a while since I had seen him, and this reunion was rather awkward. I had pretty much shunned him ever since I heard what he had done to my brother, and in the past few years I had only seen him once or twice, despite the fact that we had once shared such an open relationship. A lot of things had changed, and I couldn't deny that those things had affected our relationship. I had no idea who he was now… and that scared me, just a little.

"_You_? Why are _you_ doing that?" he asked, sounding a little dismayed. "I would have thought my brother would have found you a better job."

"It was the only one available," I answered, shrugging. My awkwardness was suddenly gone. Something about Gaara's calm demeanor seemed a bit off, but I assumed that to be a result of some of the changes he had undergone.

He walked over to the tray of food and picked up the chopsticks. I turned for the door.

"Wait," he said, chewing on a piece of braised pork in honey. "This is delicious."

"Thank you," I said, bowing humbly. Suddenly, I realized what I had just revealed. My head shot up hastily.

"I… I mean, the chef will be very grateful to hear your compliment," I said quickly, trying to cover up my comment.

"That's alright," he answered. "I know you are quite skilled at cooking."

"Oh," I replied, turning red. "Thanks."

"You've been with Kankuro for a while now, am I right?" he asked. I blinked at the sudden change of subject.

"I… uh… yes, I have," I replied.

"Mmh…" he answered, thoughtfully chewing on a piece of lettuce. "He is lucky."

_Lucky?_ I thought. _What the hell is that supposed to mean?_ He smiled at me benevolently. His thick eyes widened when he tasted my fruit salad. He gulped it down hungrily, emitting a sound of satisfaction every once in a while. I stared at the mark on his forehead in fascination, wondering how the kanji for 'love' had gotten there, especially since, according to Kankuro, he wasn't the loving type at all.

He was cute, I'll admit. Something about him was strangely attractive, and it wasn't the money or the power. It was just… him. His essence was sinking into me, pore by pore... getting deeper and deeper the longer I stood there watching. I brushed my hair back self-consciously. Did he know what he was doing to me? I had never felt this… special before, not even with Kankuro. He appreciated me, but Gaara actually complimented me on something as trivial as my _cooking_! Kankuro never did that. He praised me when I showed improvement in my taijutsu. But not when I cooked. It was amazing that I hadn't noticed this before, considering Kankuro was one of my best friends before we got together.

Gaara placed his dish back onto the tray, and I noticed that he had eaten the entire meal without sitting down even once.

"That was marvelous," he said. "Marvelous."

I blushed and took the tray back into my arms.

"Thank you," I muttered, smiling like a little girl. I headed out the door.

"You're not leaving yet, are you?" he asked. I turned back, shocked that he wanted me to stay.

"I… I must. I have duties," I stammered. He nodded once, touching my arm.

"I understand. We both do. But I do have one more question."

"Anything, my Lord," I replied, bowing my head. I expected some kind of outlandish request, something I would have to do to prove my loyalty to this country, maybe something to test my skill or will-power, or whatever else I was required to possess. Instead, I was asked something completely different.

"My brother Kankuro tells me that you also have a proficiency in storytelling. Is that true?"

I was taken aback. This was the all-important question that he had to ask me? At first, I thought it was silly, but the way he stared at me, so serious and maybe even a bit wistful, I answered in the best way I could.

"A p-proficiency in storytelling? I guess so, maybe from the time I spent at the orphanage, telling the littlies bedtime stories."

"Please… I want to know… what is it like down there?"

"Down where?" I asked, setting the tray back onto the table. He motioned for me to take a seat on his bed. I did as I was told, although rather stiffly, if I may say so myself. I wondered how many girls would have loved to be in my place right then.

"On the street. Amongst the people, and the children," he replied. I blinked in surprise.

I began, hesitantly at first, but getting steadier and more surely as time passed.

And Gaara listened.

And it was the most incredible feeling.

Kankuro listened to me, too, but… it was never the same. Gaara had questions, thousands of questions, and I felt no hesitation in answering them. I realize now that we were never really in love, but I think that, in ultimately giving Gaara my body, I gave him something else, too. On top of all that, he gave _me_ another reason to exist, although to this day I'm not so sure he intended to. Every time I remember him, I remember his hands on my skin, softened by his frequent contact with sand… and his deep, penetrating eyes that stared through to my soul… it was better than any best memory I had of anyone, even Leiko. But it was a bittersweet recollection as well.

As all things go, rumors of my romantic endeavors with the Lord Kazekage began to reach the wrong ears: Kankuro's ears. He confronted me about it, and I had to tell him. I couldn't lie; it would have gone against my nature. Our friendship collapsed to a point where we couldn't even bear to look at each other.

Guilt consumed me, but I blocked it out with Gaara's touch. It worked, until Gaara was taken away from me by the Akatsuki… then, not even my love for Leiko could keep me in the village. Of course, Yūra was killed that very same day, perhaps only moments before Gaara, but I did not blame it on the Akatsuki. I was well aware of his involvement with them. Then again, perhaps if I had said something beforehand, Gaara would have been spared… but I had Yūra to thank for my life, so to double-cross him would have been unacceptable, even on my standards.

Life had hardened our hearts, mine and Sasuke's, into diamonds: cold, transparent, and utterly unbreakable. There is really no more to say on the subject, for I ran out of words for my feelings long ago.


	6. Chapter 6 - Cooking

**Hello there! Hopefully you're enjoying the story so far. I just wanted to let you know that this chapter is something of a filler chapter, although I recommend you read it anyways, just for fun! Nothing really happens in this chapter in regards to the plot, but some character relationships are established, which I think is important! But if you're short on time, or just REALLY want to know what happens next, it wouldn't be horrible to just skip this chapter and move on to the next one. Thank you, and always remember to review, if you can! :)**_  
_

* * *

_The orphanage itself sat on a large cliff overlooking the entirety of the Sand Village. It was the only residential building amongst a string of bunkers and safety complexes, but Koruna, the widowed lady of the house, hardly minded. Her husband had spent close to a year designing the elaborate mansion that was now the Suna Orphan House, so despite its rather rundown appearance, the house itself had never lost its secret beauty in her eyes. It had three floors; the topmost floor housed the boys and girl's bedrooms, her bedroom, and the laundry room, while the second floor housed the school, the small shrine, and playrooms, and the first floor was home to the kitchen, bathing room, common living room, and art room (many of the children were inclined in this area, so why deny them a safe haven from the endless ruckus of day to day life?). The rooms were, for the most part, clean, thanks to the undying effort of the older girls that called Suna Orphan House their homes. _

_Around the orphanage there was a fence, not the kind that seemed imposing or restricting in any way, but just enough so that the smaller children who still had a tendency to put one foot in front of the other without the slightest knowledge of where that would lead them, would be protected from the jagged abyss that fell away below them once the cliff ended. This fence had a gate, one that was creaky and old but which fulfilled its purpose of restraining the littlies, and through this gate went a path that was only slightly discernable from the otherwise arid landscape by a haphazard row of bamboo posts and rocks that some hopeful soul had placed there in order to create some semblance of civilization. This path led directly to a long, steep and narrow staircase that cut its way along the cliffs, running straight down through an earthen tunnel that had been carved directly through the cliffside. It was much like a pathway for ants, when viewed from a distance… like a long, thin welt in the side of rock. The earth below the house was a strange mixture of brown and red, a kind of maroon that was hardly found anywhere other than on this very row of cliffs. It was loose, much looser than the hard-packed earth found in the village below, but the children who ran and jumped about within the courtyard of the Orphan House had adapted quickly, and hence had learned how to play games like tag and ninja without falling on their faces. _

_The sky above the house was clear, clearer than anything one could find below. While vicious winds sliced through the rounded houses built in the center of the village, the air around the orphanage remained pure and calm, as those particular tempests rarely ever reached their altitude with strength enough to cause a sandstorm. On a cloudless night, one could count the constellations with the naked eye, and watch the shooting stars slip through the dark like celestial shinobi on a most urgent mission. And the silence, that was the most blessed. The air seemed to absorb the hoots and hollers of children as they yelped and played in the sand and painted pictures on the walls with their grubby hands, and all was at peace with itself once they had fallen asleep in their beds. And the only view, if one should decide to look out the window, was the endless blanket of midnight that stole into the minds of children and granted them dreams sweeter than honey tea. _

_The afternoon was equally blessed as the older basked in the sun in their underwear, watching the younger fight over a toy or a bucket of water, whilst lethargically absorbing the scent of the food that wafted through the windows and surrounded the orphanage in a succulent cloud of mouthwatering delight. Eventually, they would take the quibbling nuisances by the hand and lead them inside, where the two eldest, the red-haired senpai and the black-haired chan, already waited with broad smiles, outstretched arms, and encouraging words that would motivate even the pickiest of stomachs to take a seat and eagerly await their lunch. _

_**The next morning…**_

Someone was knocking on my door. It was annoying me. A lot. Couldn't they see that I was practicing new jutsu? After all, I had to find a way to fight that new girl somehow, right? The knocking wouldn't stop annoying me.

"Naruto? Naruto! I know you're in there! It's me! Open up, Naruto! Naruto? Naruto! NARU-"

"What?!" I asked, ripping the door open. Speak of the devil, there she was. The new girl. At this point, she didn't even deserve a name. She was just the more-annoying-than-Sakura thing that lived upstairs. And she was being annoying just by standing there, hands held out in front of her like a little kid!

"Umm… do you know what time it is?" she asked.

_Calm down, man. Just… calm…_

"YOU CAME ALL THE WAY OVER HERE AND MESSED UP MY PRACTICE JUST TO ASK ME WHAT TIME IT IS?!" I screeched. She stepped back, looking at me. Her big cat eyes grew even bigger, and I was afraid she might cry.

"I… umm… actually… when's lunch?" she squeaked. I slapped my face. It hurt.

"It's eleven thirty, okay?" I answered.

"Great!" she chirped, her fear suddenly gone in a flash. "That means I still have time to cook lunch for you guys, kind of like an 'I'm sorry I kicked your butts' kind of thing!" She turned and flounced back down the hall, back to her room.

"What the…?' I asked, scratching my head. How could anyone's mood change so quickly? Whatever. I had jutsu to perfect.

[-]

_This'll get her for sure!_ I thought, looking at the jutsu scroll one more time. This time I had it. _Okay, now concentrate…_

Tromp. Tromp. Tromp.

_Concentrate a little harder…_

Tromp. Tromp. Tromp. Tromp.

_C'mon, you can do it…!_

TROMP!

I walked over to the door angrily and saw Sachi lugging three heavy bags of groceries to her apartment.

"Whoa… whoa…!" she said, trying to balance an especially full-looking bag. I sprinted out and caught it before it made a huge mess that _I'd_ probably be stuck cleaning up.

"Thanks, Naruto!" she said, grinning over her shoulder. "C'mon! We have to put this stuff in my kitchen!"

_Kitchen…?_ I thought. _Oh wait! She has a kitchen! Hmm… I know it's around here somewhere…_

The heavy paper bag cut into my arms. I was surprised that Sachi didn't break under the weight of the other two.

"Naruto, hurry up! I need that bag!" she whined from somewhere inside of her place. I walked in and she grabbed the bag from me, plopping it down onto a counter. She opened the first cabinet and looked over the stuff that was in there.

"Hey Naruto, do you have a saucepan?" she asked, opening the second cabinet.

"Umm… uh… don't think so," I answered. She looked at me, putting her hands on her hips. Great, so she was one of _those_ girls. Man, why do I always get stuck with the ones that love to cook and clean and be girly? This is so not cool! At least when Sasuke was still around I had another guy to gripe about Sakura with. Now I'm surrounded by chicks!

"Do you even know what a saucepan is?" she asked.

"It's a span for saws, duh," I replied. "Every little kid knows that."

She rolled her eyes. "You're not gonna be any help, are you?"

I shrugged. "I can cut stuff. And make instant ramen."

"So can my friend," Sachi answered. "And he's four."

"Well, excuse me for not being the best a cooking. After all, I am a _guy_," I snapped. She put her hands on her mouth and giggled.

"I never asked you to be, Mr. Not-the-best!" she answered, flicking her wrist.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" I retorted angrily. She opened the bottom cabinet and fumbled around a little.

"Nothing, Naruto! You're too sensitive!"

"And put on a pair of shorts, will ya? I mean, it's not like I don't appreciate the view, but-" I stopped myself as Sachi came up again, holding a big mixing bowl and a bunch of random cooking stuff, including this big pan she later told me was a saucepan. She acted like she didn't even hear me, good thing, too, and put the bowl on the other counter.

"Well," she replied, blowing a strand of hair out of her eyes. "I guess it's a good thing I went to the city this morning and picked up the essentials, huh?" Smiling, she opened the bags and began to take everything out.

"Man, what are you gonna do with all the stuff?" I asked as she took out weird thing after weird thing after weird thing. She turned around again.

"What do you think?" she asked sarcastically.

"I dunno," I answered. "Something, I guess."

"Cook it, of course!" she answered, shooing me out of the kitchen. "Now go get Sakura, and anyone else you can find who's hungry, okay? And don't come here for another two hours… oh, and when you do come back, make sure you have an appetite!"

[-]

Two hours were almost up, and I had found Sakura, Choji, Ino, Shikamaru, Lee, Tenten, and  
Iruka-sensei, and they were all hankering for a bite of whatever Sachi was cooking. It smelled up the entire area around our building, but she wasn't letting anyone into the kitchen.

"Man, what's taking so long, Naruto?" Ino whined. Iruka grinned at her. We were all standing around the entrance, waiting for Sachi's ok to come in.

"Patience is a virtue, Ino," he said. "I'm sure the food will be worth the delay."

I nodded. "This is totally gonna make up for all the times I made you buy me ramen!"

"Ooh I can't wait!" Tenten said happily.

"Neither can I," Lee added. "This will be delicious."

"Ugh, what's the point of coming here if we have to stand around?" Shikamaru asked. "What a drag."

"Can't she hurry up a little? I'm starving," Choji complained.

"FOOD'S READY!" Sachi yelled from inside. We all got up and rushed to the door.

"Move… bushy _brow_, I'm… _hungry_!" I said, trying to squeeze through the door at the same time as Lee.

"You cannot… possibly be as… hungry as… I!" he answered, pushing me against the doorframe.

"Alright you two," Choji said, pushing us through at the same time. "Quit messing around!"

"Where ARE you guys?" Sachi asked, poking her head out from inside the door. I watched Lee's eyes grow bigger when he saw Sachi. She had taken off her red shirt thing and was only wearing her beige vest and her skirt.

"Oh, you found people, Naruto! I'm so glad! Come, come! The food's getting cold~!" she trilled, disappearing back through the door. Lee looked at me disbelievingly.

"That is… her?!" he screeched. I nodded.

"If it is possible… Konoha has grown another blossom! And a beautiful one at that!" he said happily, running into the eating room ahead of everyone else.

_Oh brother,_ I thought. _What a loser…_

The eating room wasn't all that great, just a bunch of random tables and chairs, and-

My eyes popped out when I saw all the food. Sachi had shoved all her chairs together and had stacked every inch of the table she had gotten from Sakura with different plates and bowls that overflowed with stuff. There was a row of eight plates and chopsticks put together from the random stuff Sachi had apparently found in the cabinets.

"Now _that's_ what I'm talking about!" Choji cheered, walking over to the table and looking at everything there.

"Well, I'm glad you guys like it!" Sachi said. We all jumped back. When did she get here?! Everyone stared at her for a moment, taking her in.

"Well, Naruto?" she asked, grinning cheerfully. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your friends? After all, since I'm probably gonna stay here for a while, I might as well get to know some people my age, right?"

Right.

"Okay, so let's start with him," I said, pushing her towards Shikamaru. "He's our resident wise-guy. No really, he is."

"Shikamaru," he said, holding out his hand. Sachi shook it stiffly, her look suddenly cold and weirdly scary. Shikamaru looked at her the same way.

"Nice to meet you," she said quietly.

"O-_kay_ then!" I said, pulling her towards everyone else who was gathering settled at the table. "This is Ino, Iruka-sensei, and Tenten…"

"Nice to meet you, Sachi," she said, reaching for a dumpling. Sachi smiled, her iciness suddenly gone.

"…and this is Lee. I think you might be seeing a lot of him," I said. Suddenly, he stood up, taking Sachi's hand and kneeling down on one knee. What was he trying to pull? A marriage proposal?

"In all my days of life, I have not seen a single bud as radiant as that which stands before me. Please forgive my humble appearance, as I was not prepared to be in the presence of a goddess…" he muttered, looking up at her in awe.

Sachi giggled, blushing.

"Well aren't you a cutie pie!" she cooed, scratching his chin like some kind of pet. She walked over to Choji, who was taking one of everything and putting it onto his plate.

"Cut it _out_, Lee!" I hissed when she was out of earshot.

"I do envy you, Naruto," he said, looking kind of lost. "Such a fine woman on your team… I never thought I would see the day when something could compare to the beauty of Sakura…"

_What beauty?_ I thought, heading over to where Sachi was taking with Choji.

"…and then I braised the pork a bit to _really_ bring out the flavor of the bamboo strips!" she said. He nodded happily, shoving another dumpling into his mouth.

"Man, this is great!" he said.

"It makes me so happy to see someone with such a healthy appetite!" she replied. "Now I know my cooking won't go to waste!"

"So what about you, Sachi?" Shikamaru asked suddenly. Sachi turned to him, a fake smile plastered onto her dollish face.

"What _about_ me?" she replied. What was going on? Why was she so tense with Shikamaru?

"Aren't you gonna eat some of your delicious food?" he challenged. She shook her head, a quick jerk no.

"I'm not very hungry, thank you. Wouldn't _you_ like something?" she asked. He walked over to the table and took an _onigiri_ from one of the platters. He bit into it, chewing over the meaty filling.

"This is good," he said, staring at her.

"Thank you," she replied, staring right back. There was obvious tension in the air from where I was about to sit down. They were having a stare-down and I couldn't figure out why. No one was talking. Finally, Ino broke the silence.

"So, uh… are we gonna eat or what?" she asked with a mischievous grin. Everyone voiced their agreement, even Shikamaru, and began to dig in.

The entire time we were eating, Sachi stood in the corner, watching us, not saying anything unless we asked her a question. I ignored it, for the most part, especially since she plopped down a huge bowl of ramen in front of me as soon as I had finished my first plate. Sure, it was a little weird, but she was a girl, and all girls are weird in one way or another (like the way Sakura always has to wash her face in the mornings). And anyways, there was almost no food left (thanks to Choji's huge eating), and I wanted to keep practicing jutsu, so I wasn't paying attention anyways.

"Would anyone like desert~?" Sachi trilled suddenly, darting into the kitchen. With a luxurious sweep of her arms, she reached into her oven and pulled out a magnificent, three-tiered vanilla cream cake.

"Tell me you bought that!" Ino said in disbelief. Sachi shook her head.

"No, Ino you silly girl!" she answered, putting onto the table (right in front of me). "I made it, of course!"

"You made that, and _everything _else… in two hours?" Iruka asked. Sachi nodded proudly.

"Everything you see here in front of you was made by me and only me!"

I took a piece of the cake and bit into it before everyone else even had a chance to wipe their plates clean. I was reaching for the second when she pushed my hand away.

"Slow down there, big boy!" she said, grinning happily. "Although I generally give priority to my teammates, there _are_ other people who would like some!"

"Sorry…" I mumbled, poking my fingers together sheepishly.

"That's alright!" she replied, handing out cake to everyone else until there was nothing left. She passed by me, holding the empty cake platter.

"Remember," she whispered in my ear. "You can have cake any time you want. All you have to do is ask me, and I'll whip one up, just for you in a jiffy!"

I smiled, and she smiled back. And although I would never admit this to anyone EVER… I actually thought she was… cute. A little girly, but… cute anyways. And she was a great cook, too. Maybe, on a one to ten scale, I'd give her like an eight or a seven. Then again, all aspects considered…

…maybe she'd get an eleven.


	7. Chapter 7 - Sixteen Seals

"_Geez, Sayomi, get a grip! What's up with you, are you pregnant or something? C'mon! Talk to me!"_

_Sayomi stared silently out of the window into the night. The sky was so black, so dark and hidden… was he under the same sky, under the same stars? Was he breathing? She didn't know. She couldn't have known. Did he see the same moon, the same beauty that she did? Was he resting? Was he dead? Again… the knowledge of such matters escaped her. A tear slid numbly down her cheeks and she swallowed, her face itself emotionless but for her wet eyes and her tear-stained shirt. How long had it been since he had spoken to her? How long since he had rejected her, since their eyes had met and she had first set eyes on his beautiful face? She couldn't bear the thought. Oh, if only he knew how long she had cried…_

"_He just… dismissed me," she mumbled to no one in particular. She barely noticed the presence of her friend. "Just like that. He didn't even let me tell him. Tell him that I was his sister."_

"_And you honestly think he would have believed you," Leiko replied for what seemed the hundredth time, pinching the bridge of her elegant nose with a frustrated sigh. She walked over to Sayomi and put a comforting arm around her shoulder, shifting slightly as the other girl leaned her weary head into the embrace and looked out across the stars. _

"_It doesn't matter," Sayomi answered, her voice barely above a whisper. "At least I would have been able to plant that doubtful seed. You should have seen us, Lei-chan… we were identical. There was no doubt. He even asked if he knew me. My face… it was familiar to him, you see? But it was not _my_ face he recognized… it was his own. And then Gaara… he… he promised me…"_

_Leiko paused, not knowing what else to say. The silence was broken as Sayomi choked out a sob.  
Leiko shushed her, pushing a strand of hair from her moist forehead before stroking her cheek and wiping away her tears. "Everything will be alright."_

"_I don't know," Sayomi admitted, hugging her best friend tightly and burying her face in the soft cotton that was her nightshirt. "He's my brother. My only family. He's all that's left… I don't have anyone else… I just… I don't know…"_

_**The morning of the next day…**_

Naruto slunk past my doorway lethargically, just as I was pulling the strings closed on my pack. He yawned, hastily rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Mornin' Sachi. Where ya off to this early?"

"Huh?" I asked, looking up, my voice two ranges higher than it should be. "We don't have anything planned for today, do we?"

"Well… Lady Tsunade always has something for us to do…" he mumbled, and I could tell he was falling asleep where he stood.

"Well, whatever the case may be, I have some errands to run out of town. Will that be a problem?"

"Errands?" he asked skeptically. "At sunrise?"

"I like to get a head start," I answered, standing up and stretching like a cat. "And you've seen how fast I run, right? I'll be back before you know it!"

"Okay, well… bring back some breakfast," he muttered.

"Oh, no!" I answered. "I made some pastries last night. They should still be in my refridgerator, so I'll leave the door open… oh, and don't expect me back until later this afternoon."

"What- why?" he asked, startled awake by the rough push I gave him on a passing.

"You ask too many questions!" I trilled. "I'm just going to get some stuff from back home! And besides, today is our day off, isn't it? What's the difference whether I'm here or not?"

"But what if-"

"Shhh…" I interrupted, pushing myself against him. If you wonder why, the answer is simple. Sasuke had told me to distract everyone while I put our plan into motion. And, since I _was_ a girl, after all, I should be allowed to take advantage of that, correct? But I held back, at the risk of making my brother angry with me. For although he did not specify exactly _how_ I was to accomplish these things, he did mention not to do anything tasteless, for fear it might upset young Naruto's mind.

"There will be no 'what-if's. Now you will march right back to your room, lie down in your bed, and go back to sleep. And when you wake up, this conversation won't be in your pretty little head anymore, understood?" I crooned softly, as if lulling a child to sleep.

"Mmhmm…" he answered, turning back to the direction from whence he came.

_Sweet dreams, Naruto._ I thought, folding my hands to form the seal that would teleport me all the way to the doomed Amegakure, the Village Hidden in Rain, where the second half of my destiny (though rather unknown on his part) awaited my return.

[-]

The rain drizzled down in its everlasting shower as I plodded through the damp streets, searching for a single soul to point me in the direction of my older sibling. The village itself seemed to have been overrun by men, me having not seen a single woman since my arrival in this wretched place. My assumptions seemed even further proven every time an old crab hooted at me from an inn. Drunk as lords, they all were, despite the progressed industrialization that characterized this place.

I was in the process of deftly avoiding a puddle when a hunched over old man scuttled up next to me, working hard to match my quickened pace. I remained mute, not wanting to talk to someone whose dirt crust was visible even underneath the heavy cloak he was wearing.

"Beautiful day isn't it?" he croaked, his voice hoarse from years of usage. I looked down at his carved up old face, the caked wrinkles on his cheeks and underneath his eyes crinkling in sordid pleasure. When I did not answer, he plucked gently at my shirt. I had taken the liberty of leaving my vest at home. I wouldn't want it to suggest where I had been keeping myself. The soft red material hung in a boat neck cut around my shoulders; I had removed my artificial chakra, hoping that Older Brother Itachi would recognize me if I looked like Sasuke. Now, my pale skin shivered at the thought of the old man's callused hands smirching my blouse.

"Could it be, young lady, that you are seeking something in this place?" he continued. I stared straight ahead, more out of politeness than disgust.

"Akatsuki," I said simply. "I am seeking the Akatsuki."

He laughed, wheezing out each scratchy sound like a dog with a severed throat.

"A girl like you who seeks out the dangers of the Akatsuki? You must be the face of foolishness!" he replied. I stopped walking and pulled a kunai out of my sleeve. His smile vanished as he looked at my weapon. He bowed his head.

"I see that I was wrong about your intentions," he muttered. "Still…"

He touched my sleeve again, and I pushed him away, simply extending my arm to send him flying into the gutter. In any other instant I would have rushed over to assist him. But I was not myself in this place. I was something else, something… deadlier.

As if being picked up by machinery, he rose, scuttling to my side once more like an obedient lapdog.

"I will take you to the member you seek, but you must pay a small fee for my services," he said, his voice seedy with anticipation as he rubbed his fingers together in front of my face. Wordlessly, I reached into my pack and pulled out a small, bronze coin, holding fast to my kunai in case he should ask for more than I was willing to give.

He took the money and scurried along the streets, his rat-like movements blending in with the dank atmosphere. The streets were dirty and mud-covered from the endless rain, although I wondered how everything wasn't washed clean by now. Then again, dirty intentions do leave their mark.

We stopped in front of a gray building that strongly resembled a factory or warehouse. The smokestacks were blackened from the soot they emitted, and the door was enormous and metallic. I heard the old man hurrying away as I looked closer at the establishment that supposedly housed my brother. A breeze blew the rain into my eyes, and I blinked furiously to retain my vision. Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder. A woman stepped in next to me. She had short hair that seemed purple in the fading light, and a small paper rose was fastened securely in it.

"It is cold in the rain, dear. Perhaps you should come inside," she said, pulling my arm towards the door. Her grip was not what one would describe as soothing, but I expected nothing less towards a sixteen year-old girl that materialized out of nowhere in front of the Akatsuki base.

We stepped through the iron gates and walked up the jagged path that led up to the entrance of the place where I would (hopefully) find Older Brother Itachi. The giant doors creaked loudly as we entered the factory, a bolt of lightning illuminating the dark, ominous space. There were lights hanging from the ceiling, glowing golden ones that sharply contrasted the darkness outside. I looked over to the far corner of the expanse and saw a blond man in the corner. He had no arms, I realized in disgust as I watched him rise to greet us. Farther to the left was a man who looked like some deranged combination of human and shark, who regarded us with shifty eyes.

The blond one ambled over to us slowly, taking his time in looking me up and down.

"Aren't you going to introduce us to your guest, Konan?" he asked. The woman named Konan pushed me towards him roughly.

"I found her sneaking around outside. Some old man brought her. I don't know, does she look familiar to you, Deidara?"

_Deidara…_ I thought. _I've heard that name before. But where?_

"Yeah, in fact she looks _really_ familiar," he answered, scrutinizing me even further. Suddenly, Konan let go of my shoulder as a shadow appeared from behind me.

"Well, well, well. I was wondering when _you'd_ show up," Older Brother Itachi said quietly. I turned around quickly, hoping to catch a glimpse of this legendary creature, this… being who murdered my clan. At first glance, I doubted that this person could have done such a thing. His eyes were kind, it seemed, and his face was soft and unassuming, except, perhaps, for the dark creases under his eyes that accented his elegantly high cheekbones. It was easy to see that we were related, for I too had inherited such cheeks. However, I was spared the creases, a benefit on my mission, no doubt.

"Come with me," he said quietly and I swallowed in an attempt to calm my nerves.

We walked outside again, and I made a point of respectfully avoiding his eyes as he scrutinized me. We stopped in the middle of the road and I shivered against the rain.

"Here," he said, unbuttoning his jacket and offering it to me. I hesitated, but took it when I realized that he was genuinely trying to warm me. What a strange gesture from a cold-blooded killer…

"I… I…" I stammered, unsure of what to say in his presence as I wrapped it around my shoulder.

"So you're my long lost sister, is that it?" he asked. I swallowed tensely and nodded, my face hard in defiance and fear. He smiled at me, and I sensed a bout of sadness underneath his calm, emotionless surface.

"I'll admit that sixteen years have done you well," he continued, seemingly oblivious to my emotions as he stared ahead into the rain. "You aren't that scrawny little baby I last saw, red-faced and screaming next to another one of similar circumstance. I trust you've become acquainted with Sasuke?"

I nodded hesitantly.

"And what exactly did they name you?"

I stared at him in confusion. He sighed.

"Well, since the clan wouldn't give us enough time to name you, and since you're standing here in front of me, alive and well, I would assume that someone raised you, and gave you a name at one point."

"S-Sayomi…" I mumbled, although it sounded more like a muffled shriek than an answer. Itachi glanced down at me and I turned away even farther, not wanting to be caught with flushed cheeks.

"So tell me, Sayomi. How often have you seen your twin?" he asked after a moment's pause.

"T-twin?" I repeated hesitantly. Not that I didn't know, but hearing Older Brother Itachi refer to Sasuke as such caught me off guard.

"Exactly," Itachi replied. "Identical but for your gender. But… what's this?" He was staring at my bared shoulder, where two shimmering, skin-colored seals were exposed on my fair skin, barely visible to anyone who didn't know what lay beneath them. "You didn't have these when you were born, did you?"

There was no more going around it now. I had to say something before he thought I was disrespecting him with my silence.

"I did not," I answered quietly, my voice still shaking, although not half as much as before.

His eyes darted over my entire body, and I began to feel an awkward discomfort as his dark pupils, hidden under the shadow of his hair, inspected me like livestock. His hand darted out and caught me on the shoulder before I could react, spinning me around.

"They're on your legs, too," he commented, fingers digging into my skin painfully. "How many do you have?"

I pulled myself free of him - perhaps with a little more force than I had intended - and met his eyes carefully. "I have exactly sixteen," I replied, "one of which hasn't been opened yet." It was the longest sentence I had spoken to him, and it gave me a swelling of pride that I had only experienced once before, when Sasuke had finally agreed to let me join him on his travels.

"Explain, if you will," he replied. I was relieved at his calm tone, something (as I learned later) that never changed. I bit into my thumb, drawing blood, then drew a line across my palm and began to fold my hands into the all too familiar hand seals.

"Summoning Jutsu!" I announced, slamming my hand onto my left shoulder as opposed to on the ground.

There was a faint glow as my ninth seal unraveled, releasing the chakra I stored under "courage". Each of my seals has a meaning, but I will have to get to that later. I cringed as the being shot out of me, appearing out of the cloud of white mist that seemed to form behind me every time I activated one of them.

"Interesting," he mumbled, observing the miniature person that now crouched on my hand. My ninth was home to a little girl by the name of Miniachua, who was incredibly adept at wielding the tiny katana she possessed… you see, she was about six inches tall, and incredibly capable when it came to the Clone jutsu. She could make an army of herself, and then attack any opponent, a deadly strike that left most unconscious from blood loss. He took her from me carefully and held her in his own hand, bringing her up to his face so that he could look at her carefully. My skin shivered where we touched, rustling the deadened nerves where my chakra had yet to regenerate. I hunched over a bit, weakened by the release of the seal into the open.

"Interesting…" he repeated, handing her back to me. "And you know how to use them?"

"Of course." I replied. "In exchange for me letting them live in my body, they follow my every whim. The 'contract' that I signed at birth is in the form of these seals on various places on my body. All I must do is summon them with my blood, and they will fight my battles for me." No doubt he would have figured it out by now, that I was the next Keeper, but there wasn't much he could do about it, except kill me.

"You mention that one hasn't been released yet. How so?"

"So far," I answered, sealing the chakra back into a puff of smoke, "I have been able to release one sphere every year of my life. They are rather sporadic, and I'll admit that it's a bit painful when the seals unlock. My chakra expends completely, and I am pretty much useless for an extended period of time. But it does benefit me; the symbols that are formed by the seals define the emotion of the time-period passing until the next one is released. For example…"

I pointed out the second exposed seal, my tenth.

"This one defines the tenth stage of my life. The seal is marked as 'Realization', released when I realized that both you and Sasuke were my brothers. In the next months following that, there was a multitude of instances during which I concluded things, not only about myself, but about others as well."

"I understand," Older Brother Itachi hummed, and we began to head back inside. "So… every year… you experience pain that is similar to the release of the Sharingan. Hm… and after that? What was your life like?"

We entered the building and I stared out of the jagged window into the small slit of sunlight that shone haphazardly through the murky throng of the ever-portentous rain clouds. It shone high in the overcast, heralding my impending need for departure.

"I am afraid, Itachi, that I must take my leave now," I replied rather apologetically. "However much I enjoyed answering your questions, I–"

Suddenly, the shark man grabbed me by the shoulder as a horrifying figure materialized out of the far shadows. The sun had vanished again, and the slight pattering of rain rung in my ears.

"People here don't just come and go as they please…" he said darkly. Never before had I seen anyone as horrifying. His face was dotted with black piercings that lined his nose and the underside of his chin. His eyes were gray and ringed… a dōjutsu, like mine? I closed my eyes fearfully and I heard him chuckling.

"Be frightened only if you have ill-will against me," he said. I opened my eyes but an inch, and stared into its dark, pierced face, if it could be called that. His eyes seemed to peer through me, into my soul, like and evil god or something of that sort.

"I am Pein," it introduced. "Leader of this clan."

"Pleasure…" I whispered.

"Hardly so," he replied, turning to the man shark. "She may leave, Kisame. Let her visit whenever she wishes. After all, who am I to keep a joyful family apart?"

"Wait," I said, turning to Itachi, my hands already prepared to form the seal that would take me home to the Sand.

"Yes?"

"One final question before I leave," I said. "And in turn, I will tell you something you wish to find out."

"Very well," he answered. "Ask your question."

"Why did you let them take me away?" He paused, thinking over the question.

"You knew I was alive for sixteen years," I continued softly, "and yet, you never came to find me. You never cared about me, did you? Did I ever cross your mind? And please, do consider honesty. I despise liars, and I would hate to hate you, so to speak."

"I am afraid I cannot answer. Does this affect your end of the bargain?" he replied calmly. I shook my head.

"Not at all, Eldest Brother."

I pulled back my hair and concentrated my jutsu, revealing to the few members of the Akatsuki who were watching, my best kept secret.

"You inherited the Sharingan," Itachi stated simply. I shrugged.

"I despise it, in all its expediency. It drove me out of my village, you see. Or rather…" I added slyly, throwing my hands together with an impish smile, "…the legacy of the two remaining heirs did."

And with that, I vanished.

* * *

**Hello again! I'm sorry to be bothering you so much, but I thought you might be interested to know that this chapter marks the beginning of a long period of time where I stopped writing! I was stuck, I won't lie, and I didn't pick it up again until two years later, in 2011! So if, in the next chapter, you notice a different style of writing, it's because I really buffed up my technique! Thank you, and please review! **


	8. Chapter 8 - Home

_The air was heavy with the scent of animals, exotic foods, and the evening heat. Soon, that heaviness would be lifted by the gentle breeze that came with twilight, and eventually everything would glow with the incandescence of the moon after the sun had made its graceful exit. The circus caravan rolled away slowly, back to where it had come from, and Sayomi, Leiko, Kankuro, and Temari prepared to journey back home. Sayomi's stomach hurt, but only because it was so full of sweets; cakes, candy, sweetmeats, and various other calorie-rich foods hung like a rock in her abdomen, washed down with delicious sweet red bean soup and kuriyoukan she had bought as a snack as they watched the elegant girls and daring dancers perform their lively shows… All in all, it had been a wonderful day, one that was about to become even more wonderful as the end drew near. Sayomi did not yet know this, but Kankuro did._

_Upon arriving in the Sand village, Temari, with the excuse of beauty rest, darted ahead to her place of residence, leaving Sayomi alone with Kankuro and Leiko, who eventually departed as well, saying that there were a few 'things' that she had to get done. Very suspicious, but Sayomi did not protest, as it gave her time to walk alone with her close friend Kankuro, who had been behaving rather oddly that entire day. Why, she wondered, was it that every time she looked at him, his face turned red and he looked away awkwardly? Also, why had he been so eager to accompany her all the way home, when he resided on the other end of town? And why had he been unable to say anything to her this entire day? It was all quite strange; perhaps he was falling ill._

_They walked in silence, but it was the kind of silence that one cherishes rather than trying to break it. They were simply enjoying each other's company… at least, that's how it seemed. Sayomi most definitely felt that way, although something was telling her that there had been a reason why her inseparable best friend had suddenly separated, leaving Kankuro in her stead. Kankuro, surely an unworthy substitute in Leiko's eyes. Nevertheless, here they were, coming out of the steps that led up to the orphanage. Just as Sayomi said her goodbyes and was about to go in through the gate, Kankuro stopped her by grabbing her wrist._

_It was night, and the stars were bright in the sky as she peered into his eyes with confusion. What was Kankuro doing? She couldn't tell, as her experience with men never went past the aged grocer in the store where she often went shopping, that always greeted her with a smile when he handed her the order. Kankuro was not like this grocer. _

"_What are you doing?" Sayomi asked with slight fear as he pulled her closer to him, reeling her in gently. He smirked at her, and something deep within her began to stir and awaken with a vengeance as he wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her. Her light summer dress flapped silently in the breeze as she stayed there, attempting to analyze what this new emotion was that had suddenly come to life. _

"_Do you trust me?" he whispered into her ear as she unconsciously pulled herself closer. This new emotion was making her do this, was preventing her from fighting back. Did she trust him? Of course! They were friends, after all. But Sayomi had a feeling that the trust he was asking of her at this moment was more than what she assumed it to be. Still…_

"_Of course I do," she replied as she drew away. "That's a silly question." She turned away to leave. Was that it? Was that the accumulation of the last minute or so? But no. that was not the end. She turned one more time to smile at Kankuro when all of a sudden, she felt a firm had grasp her gently by the chin. Her eyes widened in surprise as Kankuro kissed her, but it was much less shock and more of that pleasant astonishment one felt when the anticipated actually occurred. Of course, she had assumed it. But that was just about it. She hadn't actually thought…_

_Their lips parted slowly and Sayomi exhaled in relief. Kankuro, taking note of this, immediately thought he had done something terribly wrong. He began babbling out an apology, but Sayomi shushed him. _

"_Save it," she whispered, and kissed him again before running back to the Orphan House without a backwards glance._

_**A few hours later…**_

It was early afternoon by the time I got to the Sand Village. I was tired, I'll admit, most of my chakra expended. Despite the heat of the sun that shone overhead, I couldn't stop shivering. The frightening ordeal that I had just gone through was haunting my mind. Pein… just looking at him made me ache in unfamiliar places. He was what his name defined him as. Dangerous.

I had long since dropped my dark façade, and was fully prepared to face whatever it was that awaited me in the village of my upbringing with the apathetic carapace I had assembled in the months that I had been gone. An expert at sneaking in and out of the Sand Village, I didn't doubt my ability to complete my tasks without getting caught by the wrong people. I was a ninja, after all… a ninja whose departure had been nothing short of utter disgrace.

[-]

"… and then, you wouldn't believe what Koruna-sensei said to her! She was all like 'if you do that again, young lady, I'll make sure your stuffed animals go _down_ the drain!'"

I burst out laughing. It had seemed like ages since Leiko and I had gotten some time to go out together. It was exactly one month after I was hired by the Kazekage, and we had spent most of the day at the market, buying things we would never need with the money I had earned (and borrowed) from Gaara. He had become especially munificent when it came to certain things, and that included financial matters. Never before had I been so well off. Of course, I felt bad for taking advantage of his capital, but he insisted upon it, saying that I was the best cook (amongst other things…) that he had ever had the pleasure of instating. Then, he had pushed me out of the door, claiming to need some time for himself, and that I should go visit my old friends and family… that included Kankuro. Of course, I hadn't found him anywhere (just my luck, then), and had instead gone to the orphanage to visit my best friend who had, of course, greeted me with a running start. After spending every penny we had, we were heading back to the orphanage for dinner.

"So, enough about me. What's going on with you?" she asked, when suddenly, a piercing sound filled the air. It was loud and alarming, and I saw Leiko covering her ears in dismay.

"What's going on?" she yelled over the drone of the mind-numbing tone. Three gongs, over and over again. People began hurrying through the streets, banging on doors and begging for cover. I looked around and saw that the village's most prominent shinobi were perched on top of the rooftops all around the village.

"We're under attack!" I yelled back, my fists balling together. Leiko and I were training as kunoichi, and we both knew what had to be done.

"I'm going back to the orphanage!" I said to her. "We have to make sure the littlies are safe!"

I began to run down the road, but Leiko stopped me.

"I'll do it," she said. "You go back to the Kazekage tower and see if they need you there."

I was about to protest, but the look in her eyes told me that it was best to do what she asked of me. I nodded once.

"See you on the flip side!" Leiko called cheerfully, and I smiled. Then I bolted in the other direction.

The closer I got to the bulbous, spherical tower, the more heavily it seemed to be guarded. At one point, I stopped in the middle of the street and looked up at the sky. There was a strange bird, floating amongst the clouds, and what looked to be a man riding on its back.

_Our enemy… _I thought with malice. Running up to the Kazekage tower, I dashed through the hallways, my new red blouse flapping in the wind.

"Gaara!" I cried, dashing into his room. It was empty. Suddenly, I heard the door sliding shut behind me. I whirled around just to see one of Gaara's personal guard shinobi glaring at me before locking me in.

"Hey!" I protested, running over and tugging at the handle as the alarm grew quieter. I dashed towards the small row of windows, leaning out of one and desperately contemplating how badly it would kill me if I jumped. I wondered how many times Gaara must have stared out of this window at the people he was leading… But why would they lock me in here? I hadn't done anything wrong… had I?

My head jerked up as I heard cries from the street below, and gasped when I saw what had caused the commotion. It was Gaara! I wanted to cry out, but decided against it when I realized that we weren't just facing any opponent; the long black jacket with the tell-tale red clouds speckling the sleeves and the body made my eyes bulge in realization. My mouth went dry and I suddenly found that I could no longer breathe properly. This was more than just a rogue shinobi.

This was Akatsuki.

I heard wood splintering and realized how hard I had been gripping the window frame. My knuckles were white from the tension, and the nerves in my fingers were numb with fear. I had to force myself to inhale after realizing that Gaara's life was in danger. Not that I doubted his ability to protect the village. I was simply concerned for his general health, which had just recently reached its high point.

The Akatsuki that Gaara was confronted with had a head of straight, blond hair, and a freakish smile that chilled me to the core. My vision had been heightened by the adrenaline coursing through my veins, so I could just make out what seemed like a robotic right eye underneath the feminine-looking sideswipe with which he chose to accent himself. In any other situation, I would have severely doubted this man's gender, but it was clear to me in this case that it was a male we were dealing with; his voice, as soon as he spoke, although not deep, was still masculine.

My heart seemed to be pounding in my ears as I forced myself from the window. I knew I wouldn't be able to watch Gaara in battle. True he seemed all powerful on the outside, but I knew him better than that. His silence was nothing but an act, a shield that made up for his lack of trust in human beings. I slid down the wall, cowering on the ground as I heard a boom. It rung in my ears, forcing a tear out of my eyes as I squeezed them shut. This wasn't happening. It just wasn't. It was nothing but a terrible nightmare, a terrifying delusion that would end as soon as I opened my eyes. There was another bang, and I jerked forward onto my knees. I got up hastily, grabbing the handle of the door and tugging at it desperately.

"Let me out!" I begged. "I have to help him, don't you get that?! Let me OUT!"

There was no response and I groaned in frustration. I didn't have and weapons with me, so trying to break out by force was not an option. There was a reason why those guards locked me in here, and I assumed that they wouldn't be so quick to let me out without causing any problems. I would have to fight them, and I wasn't so sure that I would be able to do that and escape with my life. Then again, I wasn't completely powerless…

I walked up to the doorframe, analyzing it carefully before deciding where to place my kick. It wasn't long before the door was torn to shreds by the force of my irate trepidation. I burst out into the hallway and blinked in surprise. Empty!

_Where did they go?_ I wondered, looking behind me. There was not a single soul in sight, most likely because they were all outside and assisting their Kazekage. _Which is what I should be doing,_ I thought, gritting my teeth. I ran down the empty hallway, the doors flying past me in a blur (I had greatly increased my ability to sprint since I had begun to train with Kankuro) until I finally burst out into the streets. I arrived just in time to see an enormous shadow of some sort covering the village, blocking out the hot sun and plunging all the houses into darkness. I watched the scene unfold above me in awe. I had never before seen such an incredible display of Gaara's ability, and to be honest, I was just a tad bit…

There was no point in denying it. I had never been more afraid in my life. I feared for my village, for Gaara, for myself and my posterity… it was something I had never experienced.

"Hey! How the hell did you get out?!"

I whirled around and saw a group of scary-looking shinobi running towards me. Gripping my kunai in my hands, I held it out in front of me threateningly.

"I don't know what the hell you want from me, but I won't just stand there and watch while Gaara gets hurt!" I shouted. "Who the hell ordered this, anyways?!"

"I did," a voice behind me answered. I spun around, my eyes narrowing incredibly. Kankuro stood there, glaring at me with unrestrained malice.

"What do you want from me?" I asked loudly as there was a deafening crash. The ground quivered, and my legs shook with the velocity of the explosion. Sand sprinkled down on the village like a desert rain, and I coughed as my eyes began to water.

_What's going on?_ I thought desperately, but it was no use. I couldn't see through the wave of sand protecting the village. The only way I could possibly know what was going on was if Kankuro let me pass, which didn't seem very likely at this point.

"I want an apology!" he shouted.

"NOW?!" I shrieked in disbelief. "Now that Gaara is in mortal danger, you want me to apologize to you? Is that why you had me locked up? You're not making any sense, Kankuro! If you really love your brother, you'll let me pass!"

"I bet you'd know a lot about loving my brother!" Kankuro shouted over the ongoing explosions. I felt my eyes watering, in part from the sand blowing through the air, and in part from the tears that Kankuro's accusations were summoning.

Suddenly, the explosions stopped. There was a deathly stillness; not even the panicked cries of the civilians could be heard. It was as if all of the Hidden Sand Village was simultaneously holding its breath. Kankuro and I exchanged a momentary glance before I jumped into the air, effectively leaping over Kankuro and running down the road towards Gaara. My heart was pounding. Something was _very_ wrong.

In my mind, there were two options at this point. Either Gaara had single-handedly beaten back the Akatsuki member and saved the entire village, or he had been beaten himself, and was now at the mercy of the blond bird devil. In the first case, I would be overjoyed. There was nothing better than cooking food for a hero's welcome to take my mind off of Kankuro. However, given the second case, which I myself thought to be highly unlikely…

"Sayomi, wait!" I heard Kankuro call, but I ignored it. He was not the most important thing on my mind at the moment. I ran faster, darting through the streets at a blinding pace. I flew past the other shinobi on the rooftops, ignoring their startled exclamations. I had to get to Gaara, I… I just _had_ to!

I had reached the tallest building that I could find and pulled out my kunai, the only weapon I possessed. Leaping into the air, I plunged it into the gigantic ceiling of sand, where it held fast. I struggled insanely, wondering what the other people watching me were thinking. Out of the entire village, there was a single, gangly girl dangling perilously from the protective sand shield, trying desperately to dig her way through.

_No… I have to get to him…_ I thought desperately, and tears began streaming down my face. The only thing I could think about was the fact that if I didn't find a way to get to him, he would die.

It seemed like forever until I could get through, but I finally did, after eons of desperate digging. Wriggling with all my might, I was able to crawl through the small tunnel I had created with my bare hands. The shield was thick, thicker than anything I had ever seen before, but I managed to get through all the same, using merely the sheer power of my will.

Pushing my head through the hole, I looked around desperately.

My heart stopped.

The first thing I saw was Gaara's lifeless body. Sand was falling off of him gently as he hung there, limp and sickly. The second thing I saw, and this was what must have caused the events that followed, was the triumphant smile on the face of the man who had killed him. It was obvious from his eyes that it was over, that he had figured out a way to pierce the Kazekage's impenetrable defenses.

This shocking realization caused me to lose my footing on the sand that was holding me up, and I cried out as I plummeted down to the ground. There was nothing I could do to slow my fall, not that I cared at the moment. The only thing that was on my mind was the intention to save Gaara from the Akatsuki. However, just before I hit the ground, to firm hands caught me. I struggled furiously until Kankuro put me down.

"Gaara!" I cried, tugging at Kankuro's hand. "Gaara's dead, he's… Gaara!" I wailed as he held me back. Kankuro grabbed my shoulders, turning me around. He looked at me with sad eyes, and I began to shiver.

"Go home," he ordered, pushing me away. "I'm going after him. Stay here. You'll be safer."

I was about to protest, but by that time, Kankuro was already gone, and the sand dome was beginning to recede from the village. I watched in horror as he was carried away by that horrendous bird thing, despite all efforts from the village jōnin to slow it down.

I was dumbstruck. What had just happened? Had Gaara really just been beaten by a member of the Akatsuki? Was this really possible? Or was it all a dream?

My knees buckled as I lost my hold on the slippery roof in which I was standing. I barely felt the impact as I crashed to the ground from six stories up. This was unreal. It was a lie. Gaara wasn't dead. It was all just a horrible dream, nothing more. I'd wake up, and I would turn and see Gaara's face in front of me, and it would all be alright. We'd laugh… maybe I would tell him a story… and then I would get up and start my duties by making him breakfast. Like a normal day. A normal day without the horror, or the drama, or… Kankuro…

"Sayomi…"

I opened my eyes, which were blurry from tears, and looked into Leiko's eyes.

"He's gone…" I whispered. "I lost him…"

"No, you didn't! Kankuro went after him! It's going to be alright," she insisted, grabbing my arm and pulling me up into a standing position. She put my arm around her shoulder and began to half-carry me back to… wherever it was that she was carrying me to. At this point, I couldn't even hear her encouraging words as she talked about Kankuro and how he would beat up those damn Akatsuki no matter what. He was dead; I had lost him… there were no words to describe what I was feeling in my heart. It was as if a rabid beast had come and torn it to shreds. Every insecurity I had felt was now in light, every weakness I possessed was illuminated tenfold. He was gone, and Kankuro would be gone too if he journeyed out into the desert like the idiot that he was…

My head began to throb, and I groaned, covering my left eye. Something was wrong with me. The pain in my heart began to travel, reaching into my mind and stretching into my face. I held on to Leiko's shoulder tightly, digging my nails into her skin as the pain got worse. This was beyond any training I had ever experienced. Nothing could have prepared me for this. Not only was I heartbroken, but there was a strange force making its way through my body… although I was beginning to suspect that the two were not entirely unrelated…

"Hey, Sayomi… are you alright?" Leiko asked, attempting to pry me loose from her arm. But I couldn't hear her. There was something happening, something big, and it seemed as though there was no amount of precaution or… anything else for that matter that could hinder its inevitable occurrence.

"S-Sayomi, what's going on?!" Leiko shrieked as I crumpled to the ground, groaning and covering my face.

"My… my eye…!" I cried, curling up into a ball. Blood seeped through my fingers as the Sharingan was awakened, something that I would later learn decided my entire fate from that point on.

"You're eye? What's… oh my goodness! Help! Someone get her help, fast!"

My vision was blurring as my left eye was infected with the cursed kekkei genkai of my clan, the infamous dōjutsu of the Uchihas. I cried while I bled, the salty tears mixing with my wounds and creating blurry red stains on my maroon blouse. Suddenly, the pain began to subside, and I felt… powerful again. Hurt beyond belief, but I was still powerful. When I looked through my left eye, I could see things I had never seen before, in ways that I couldn't have possibly imagined. Of course, I was still only at my weakest level of power, but at that point I still felt as though I could take on the world… and win. This very feeling induced the notion in me that I could leave the village and fight for Gaara myself, with Kankuro's spared life as an added bonus.

I stood up, a bit shaky, but still more awake than I had ever been since the begin of the battle with the Akatsuki member. My hair, which had come loose in the fall, drooped over my face, the first time that I had taken it down in weeks.

"Leiko…" I said softly, and she looked at me in awe. With blood dripping down my left cheek and grime in every part of my body, and with my long, raven air blowing in the wind, I must have been quite a sight to behold. It seemed as though I was looking at everything with new eyes. Leiko had taken on a new form as well, and I realized that what I was seeing with my eye was her chakra, surrounding her body like a cloud that resembled a colored halo.

"Sayomi… what happened to your eye? It's… it's red…"

I picked up my hand and wiped at my cheek, looking at the red liquid on my fingers.

"It's just blood," I answered. Leiko shook her head.

"No… your eye is actually red…"

"Even better," I hissed, letting go of her. I began to walk towards the cliffs, carrying my new sense of empowerment with me like a weapon. I drew out my kunai and twirled it around in my finger as the first platoon of guards approached me.

"We received orders from the Kazekage not to let you leave the village," one of them said, and I smiled maliciously, a drop of blood rolling down my cheek as I glared at them through my bangs.

"I'd love to see you try and stop me," I challenged. The guard smiled.

"Don't get so cocky, young lady," he replied. "Just because you're the Kage's girlfriends doesn't mean you get special—"

The guard was forced to duck as I threw a shuriken at him.

"Hey! Don't you know those things are dangerous?" he asked, wiping his cheek where I had cut him with my blade. He nodded towards the other guards and they began to run towards me, weapons raised above their heads. I looked down at my feet. This was _not_ how it was going to end. I would have rather died fighting for Gaara's life than here, stuck in the Sand because of some stupid order that he had given. True, he would probably be angry with me for disobeying him, but I was doing it to save his life, so I figured he would be grateful that I was putting my own on the line for him… then again, he never was one to see it when people did things out of the kindness in their heart…

One of the guards raised his weapon at me, and I felt a rush of adrenaline coursing through my body. So this was what a real fight was like: high-octane and invigorating. I… liked it…

He plunged his kunai at me, and I blocked it easily, looking up just as the wind lifted the hair from my face. His face grew pale when he saw my eye.

"She's… a demon…!" he exclaimed, dropping his weapon. "There's no way she's human! Just look at her eyes! They're… they're _Uchiha_!"

"What?! Lemme see that!" the first guard exclaimed, pushing the other one out of the way. I stared at him, grinning wickedly. They were afraid of me… good… that meant that I had the upper hand. This guard grew pale as well.

"So the rumors are true…" he whispered, straightening up. "Demon or not, she's not leaving this village as long as I'm alive and the Kazekage tells me that she has to stay!"

"Go on!" I challenged. "Fight me if you're a man!"

And that's exactly what they did.

[-]

I walked through the bustling streets, thinking about the hospital stay. It was the first time I had been knocked out for longer than a few hours, and the last. After Kankuro had returned, and I had unknowingly encountered Sakura for the first time, I had officially decided it was over. I was going out and looking for Sasuke, the only other Uchiha that I knew of at the time. Gaara was done for, according to Kankuro, and I believed him. Of course I did. I had known it was so since the guard had delivered me to the hospital, unconscious and covered in blood. It had been a grotesque fight, my anger and fear keeping me upright even after I lost the use of both of my arms and one of my eyes.

The hospital drones had patched me up pretty well. Given that I had relied mostly on my taijutsu because I was saving my ninjutsu for when I attacked the Akatsuki, my chakra had been pretty much there, so I was able to sustain myself after a few days, after which I immediately went to retrieve my things and left the village on the excuse of rejuvenation.

I stopped in front of the familiar house and looked at it for a moment. I had once lived here with Kankuro. It had once been my home, when I had been another person. But it was all over now. There was nothing left for me.

I pushed open the door; it was never locked, not since I had moved in. Climbing the stairs two at a time, I walked into my old room. Everything was just as I had left it, and I knew Kankuro hadn't touched my things since I had left three months ago. He was such a sentimental old fool that it was embarrassing. My fingers ran over the old pictures that were on my dresser… my favorite one was where I was with Temari, Leiko, and Kankuro at the circus that had come into town. My face was sticky with cotton candy; we were all just children then. We had somehow convinced our higher authority to let us out of training for a single day, just so we could enjoy ourselves. Gaara hadn't come. He was still in that serious phase of his where he shunned all kinds of enjoyment with every single cell in his body.

The bed frame creaked as I sat on it, running my hand over my old sheets and smiling. There were only a few good memories embedded in those threads, but they were good nonetheless. Most of them involved Kankuro…

I shook my head, wiping the smile off of my face. There was no time for reminiscing now. None of it mattered anyway. This life was gone; there was nothing left for me here. My face grew serious and I stood, pushing the sheets back. I had come here for a reason, and that reason was hardly a friendly visit. I had a time limit as well. After all, I didn't know when Kankuro would be back from… wherever he was.

Pulling out a scroll, I opened it and undid the seal that I had written on it. Admittedly, it was nothing dangerous or deadly. As a matter of fact, it was a transportation seal, meaning I could seal things inside of it and be able to carry those things (regardless of what they were) with me wherever I went. It was incredibly practical in cases like these, where I had to bring all of my belongings with me to another village, one that was incredibly far away.

I ransacked my drawers, throwing all of my neatly folded clothes onto the thin paper. Suddenly, I sensed another presence at the door. In a flash, I had sent a kunai flying behind me. There was a loud thunk as it was lodged in the doorframe, and Kankuro lowered his hand from his face slowly. There was a long silence as our eyes met. His were probably as cold as mine, and twice as furious.

"What… are you doing here?" he asked quietly, his voice harder than rock. I walked over to the door and effortlessly pulled the kunai out of the wood.

"I am retrieving my things. Any attempt to stop me would be a waste of your time. I am very determined to take what is rightfully mine," I replied simply, turning away from him. He wasn't worth my anger. He remained silent as I got the rest of my belongings and sealed them away. They dematerialized in a puff of smoke, and I rolled the scroll together. Kankuro stood motionlessly at the door, watching my every move with his small, beady eyes… eyes that I had once loved… I cleared my head once more. What had happened between us was over, and there was no bringing it back. Not that it mattered anyways. He didn't exist anymore. There was only one man left for me.

"Wait," he said as I attempted to walk past him.

"No," I replied coldly, pushing him out of my way. He grabbed my wrist and I yanked it away.

"Don't you lay a single hand on me," I ordered.

He glared at me. "Where are you going?" he hissed.

"Oh, suddenly you care to ask?" I answered sarcastically, rolling my eyes. I headed towards the stairs, putting the scroll in the left pocket in my vest.

"Sayomi…"

"What?" I snapped, turning back around. Kankuro looked genuinely concerned.

"How… have you been? Are you… you know… stable?" he asked, taking a step towards me.

"I've been perfectly fine," I replied, my voice flat, unemotional as I stepped back and away from him.

"That's a lie."

"No, it's not."

He sighed. "Sayomi, listen to me for once in your life. Just look at yourself! You've lost weight, you talk differently than you used to… you're obviously not the same person. Something happened after you left. Something bad. Did you… did you find him? Is that what-"

"That's none of your business!" I yelped, and he hushed. "Stop asking me ridiculous questions. Just because I have grown a bit leaner in the three months that I have been absent is no reason to accuse me of completely losing my mind! No, I have not found my brother, and even if I had, I would never tell the likes of you!"

"Then why aren't you staying?" he countered. I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Because I have no reason to," I answered. "Unless you can name one. And don't tell me it's because of Leiko. She's not important to me anymore."

Kankuro's face grew pale at the icy look on my face. "What do you mean? She's… isn't she your best friend?"

"Not anymore," I repeated, walking downstairs. "I have no friends in this world."

"You have me, don't you?" he asked, following me like some kind of lost puppy. I got to the bottom of the stairs and he put his hand on my shoulder, squeezing gently.

I stopped, and anger bubbled up underneath my mask of calm.

"Why don't you shut up?" I hissed, slapping his hand away. "Who do you think you are, talking to me like that? We're _over_, Kankuro."

"But… I can forgive you…!" he protested. My eyes bulged.

"F-forgive me?" I asked in disbelief. "After everything that happened, _you're_ offering to forgive _me_?! How dare you!" I stomped over to him, stabbing a finger into his chest. "You arrogant, self-centered, ill-bred little - mmpfh!" I was cut off as he kissed me, pulling me towards him and causing me to drop my things. I broke away.

"Get OFF!" I screamed, punching him in the face. He flew backwards, landing in a heap at the foot of the staircase. His lower lip was bleeding, and he breathed heavily as he stood up.

"Who… who are you?" he asked softly. I picked up my things, slinging them over my shoulder in a huff. I turned to leave.

_I am Sayomi Uchiha,_ I thought, stepping out onto the dry and dusty road. The wind blew through my hair and I looked down towards the gates. I was the avenger of the Uchiha, a daughter of the prodigy clan that protected the great village Konoha. Nothing could stop me, not even someone I once held close to me, because I no longer held anything dear. My heart was transparent, cold, and untouchable. I was emotionless, and what fault was it of mine that others weren't as blessed as I was? My cathartic nature had become my greatest asset, and I fought to preserve it even as I walked slowly down the road. The sun was getting low, so I had to hurry home… after all, there was a place I needed to go after it set. I heard shuffling behind me as Kankuro stumbled after me.

"Sayomi, wait! Don't leave! I… I have to tell you something!" he called after me. I stopped. The road was silent, deserted, so there was no way I could pretend that I hadn't heard him. I inhaled deeply. There was a pleading in his voice that I couldn't overlook, as hard as I tried.

_What more could you possibly say?_ I thought bitterly. _What happened, happened, and nothing you do will ever reverse that. There is only one person who would never betray me like you did, and that is Sasuke. What Sasuke says is the law, and he said that everything you or Gaara ever told me was a lie. Every single word. So shut up. I hate liars._

I looked over my shoulder slowly as a tear threatened to roll down my cheek.

"Whatever it is… save it," I whispered, and vanished.


	9. Chapter 9 - The Forest of Death

_The air was cool, not cold, as the morning stretched its first lazy tendrils of sun over the strange, desert landscape. Nature was at peace, in balance as Sayomi inhaled deeply. The breeze was refreshing this early in the morning, before the heat made being outside unbearable… or woke Sasuke. _

_The equipment she was using was crude, but it did the job it needed to do. Her training at this hour was not by order of Sasuke, at least… not directly. He had said on a passing that her life would be easier if she were more balanced. And hence, here she was, working on her balancing skills as well as learning how to focus her chakra in minute points on her body. Yes… she was quite good at this. _

_The Senbon needles glinted in the sunlight but she noticed nothing, saw naught but what was behind her eyelids. Only darkness greeted her as she inhaled through her nose and out through her mouth, breathing as evenly as she could as she stepped onto the next needle, ignoring the stabbing pain as her big toe sunk into the sharp metal. _

_She shook her head, ignoring the intense pressure building behind her eyeballs. _

_She was in the desert, not too far from Lord Orochimaru's hideout, hanging upside down underneath a cliff, with one hundred freshly sharpened Senbon needles jammed in a neat row into the rock face. Her goal was simple: focusing her chakra so as not to fall to her death, she had to dangle from the needles upside down by a single toe, and make it to the end. What's more, she was in the dark and therefore had to remember exactly where she had put them, lest she miss a step, fall off, and have to start again. Various toes were already bleeding where she had accidentally cut herself, or misplaced her chakra, and her hands were sore from catching herself on the rough rock face when she fell from her own carelessness. _

_It started from the tip of her toe when she reached the ninety-ninth needle. She had thought she would be able to survive to one hundred without seriously damaging herself, but she had been wrong. How unfair it was! The little drop grew bigger and bigger as it was filled with more drops that congregated at the base of her toenail. She couldn't feel it, of course… she was so immune to her senses, and it was almost as though she were meditating. Yet, that was what had broken her concentration and sent her plummeting to her death. A stupid drop of blood that landed with a fat plop on the tip of her nose. _

_Her eyes jerked open as she felt herself slipping. Her feet were non-responsive as she attempted to attach herself to the cliff, ignoring the damage to her feet it would have caused. Her heart began to pound when she realized that there was no time for her to attempt to save herself from the rocks below. She wouldn't die, she knew that, but she wasn't so sure she would be completely the same once she recovered. Sadly enough, her only regret was the time wasted by her recovery, and how low she would stoop in her brother's favor…_

_Suddenly, she was struck from the side. She was propelled backwards and slammed into the cliff wall violently. This wasn't supposed to happen, and still… there it was. That familiar musky smell of sweat and the outdoors. Was he up already? How had he found her? And why was he clinging to her like this now, breathing laboriously as he pressed himself against her body?_

"_What… are you doing, you stupid girl?" he asked menacingly, and her eyes fluttered open. He was beaded with sweat, and his eyes were hidden underneath his disheveled hair. _

"_I was… I… was training," she replied uneasily. "Training my balance, and my… my chakra control…"_

_To her surprise, he let go of her waist and looked down at her feet. The blood on her face was beginning to dry, and she longed to wipe it away as he peered back up at her. _

"_Stupid girl…" he muttered coldly before grabbing her and hoisting her onto his back. They clambered up the rock face swiftly as Sasuke added, "Your stupidity almost got you seriously hurt, and then _I_ would have had to answer for it. But as your brother, I feel obligated to waste my time assisting you. I hope you're happy."_

"_Forgive me," she whispered as he handed her the shoes she had left at the top of the cliff. It was obvious she could not walk as she slipped them onto her feet with a pained grimace. "Is that why you came looking for me?"_

"_No," he answered, and Sayomi could feel the chill in his words. "We're all hungry and are awaiting our breakfast."_

"_Of course," she replied, as a dutiful sister was required to do. "Although I'm afraid I will be unable to do so until Kabuto fixes my feet."_

"_I doubt he'll do that," Sasuke replied as they darted in the direction of the hideout. She sighed, burying her face into his white shirt._

"_So do I," she murmured, shutting her eyes, and knowing they'd want their breakfast anyways._

_**That night…**_

_Maybe this isn't such a good idea_, I thought, looking at the moon through my open window. _Maybe I'm not cut out for this. Maybe I'm not good enough to complete this mission_.

The streets below were deserted, deathly still. The entire village was asleep. That is… except for the sentinels that were watching the village with their hawk-like eyes. How could they be so careless? The one night that Sasuke comes in relative proximity of the village, and they sleep!

_Idiots_, I thought bitterly. _He's such an imposing threat, and on the single night you have any chance of catching him, you're off in dreamland. What a waste…_

My chakras were sleeping, too, I noticed. I couldn't feel their usual restless energy coursing through my veins. And I generally felt more peaceful than I usually did, more… normal. Then again, when was I ever normal? The word was not in my personal description, it never had been.

I sighed quietly as I leaned back on my bed, my eyes never leaving the starry sky. A crow flew overhead and I shuddered, thinking of my older brother. So frighteningly calm, and those eyes… never before had I seen a Sharingan like his. It spoke of power, of incredible sacrifice and pain, of… death…

I stood, slowly wrapping my arms around myself. It was cold, despite the fact that it was only the end of August. My short, brown hair blew gently in the breeze that came through my window as I shut it. The soft click of the lock hung in the air even after the frames had been closed together. The silence was killing me.

I pulled my nightshirt over my head and let it fall at the foot of my dresser. Reaching into the bottom most drawer, I pulled out one of the first things I had chosen to take with me from the Sand. It was a long, white kimono with a silver trim, and it came with an obi that was elaborately decorated with silver thread and infinitesimal glass beads. It had been my birthday present from Kankuro when I had turned fifteen. Made of only the finest materials, with only the best quality thread and silk, the kimono had been extravagant, even for Kankuro's standards.

I placed it on my bed and took a moment to admire its beauty. But there was one thing that I needed to do before I could put it on. Standing in front of the mirror, I folded my fingers together and closed my eyes.

"_Kai_!" I whispered, and I felt the chakra that surrounded me dissolve. I shivered as it flowed back into my body. It was quite the unsettling sensation, that of a foreign object entering your body and taking hold inside of it. The seal on my shoulder glowed as it was activated, and my heart began to pound against the discomfort. I felt my long, black hair fall over my naked shoulders and down to my hips, and my eyelids fluttered as my long lashes appeared, seemingly out of nowhere.

Except, they had always been there.

Despite the fact that the window was closed, my room remained cold. I shivered, reaching for my clothes. I slipped into the soft material and smiled. It really did fit perfectly… anything less would have been unacceptable. For the first time in weeks, I brushed back my hair, pinning it up with a pair of silver chopsticks. There was no need to hide my Sharingan from my brother, because he was really the only one I could trust not to tell. Then again… who would he tell other than Orochimaru?

I shuddered again, my face contorting in disgust. What a terrible man. Pale as death, more eerie than any horror story I had ever heard… mostly because he was not just some story. He was just as real as I was, and I had had the… _pleasure_ of meeting him in person before leaving with Sasuke. But those memories could wait until later. At the moment, I still had the concern of looking presentable for my brother.

It had been a while since I had been concerned with my appearance. Wearing a dress had become a foreign awareness as well, but I figured that seeing my brother was an excuse to look nice for once in my life. After successfully tying my obi around my waist, I pulled out a hairbrush and began to run it through my hair, wondering whether or not it was a good idea to risk being discovered like this. If anyone were to see me, then my entire plan would be defect, and I could slink back to Orochimaru in shame… just like he said I would after I failed miserably at everything I attempted to do. Then again, there was always the chance of being found out, and then brought to the ANBU Black Ops for interrogation…

I swallowed, brushing a little faster. This was becoming a little too dangerous for my taste. But I couldn't quit now. There was still so much to do; I _couldn't_ back out now, not even if I wanted to. Not that I did… I never wanted anything nowadays…

I placed my hand over my left shoulder, my fingers tracing the outline of the Cursed Heaven Seal as I stood in front of the mirror. All of my seals were exposed, all sixteen - seventeen, technically - of them. I hadn't gained control of the newest one yet, and it still caused me pain whenever I pushed myself to my limits, which was happening less and less lately. I sighed, grabbing my black cloak out of the bottom-most drawer and hooking the clasps into place around my neck. I drew the hood up over my head, the shadow of the dark cloth concealing my face in its obscurity.

The last thing I did before leaving was take the small basket that was under my bed into my hands. It was a strange addition to my outfit… a plain, wooden picnic basket filled to the brim with all kinds of foods and drinks, an offering of sorts to my brother. I didn't know if he would accept it, since the food was only what was left over from that day's lunch, but I hoped dearly that he wouldn't mind, since I had only the fondest intentions while I was cooking for Naruto and Choji... especially for Choji… I shook my head. Never had I seen a young man with such an appetite; then again, thinking on what his clan was known for, I should hardly have been surprised when he ate at the same speed that I cooked for him. And the way he always complimented my cooking! Kankuro had never done that, so it was only logical that Choji's praise brought on the fond memories I had of Gaara…

I shook my head as I caught myself daydreaming. I was tired, but not tired enough to forfeit my brother to dreams. I had learned a long time ago that dreams were just that: dreams, not tangible in any way, and incredibly unlikely of coming true… especially if the subject of your dream is dead…

Looking at myself one last time in the mirror, I straightened the corners of my mouth, then vanished in a puff of white smoke.

[-]

_He's very late… _I thought, walking through the woods in silence. Of course, Sasuke would pick the one meeting place where the likelihood of me being caught was one in seven as opposed to one in… whatever large number there was. I looked around… I remembered this place well. In fact, it was the place where I first caught wind of Sasuke and Orochimaru. Then, I had not really been interested in Naruto and Sakura, and unbeknownst to them, my team had actually contemplated stealing the scrolls from them while Sakura had been left to defend against the Sound Four on her own… but of course Leiko had to give an entire lecture about how _real_ Chūnin were honorable and didn't take from other Chūnin.

Our team ended up leaving the Forest of Death without any scrolls, food, or water… all thanks to  
Leiko's constant whining about honor, and one other unfortunate mishap best left unremembered. Even as I padded through the forest for the second time, I was convinced that we could have made it all the way to the final round if we had just taken that damn earth scroll from them when we had the chance. But it didn't matter now; it was all in the past, although I never would have thought I would reenter the 44th Battle Training ground by my own free will…

I frowned. It had been a while that I had been walking in circles now (intentionally, of course), and there was no sign of my brother. Suddenly, there was a rustling behind me. Thinking that I was being followed, I reached into the sleeve of my kimono and pulled out three shuriken, launching them behind me in less time than it took for me to blink. The rustling stopped, and I was relieved for the time being. That should have scared off whoever was following me. It wasn't Sasuke; I knew that for a fact. He wasn't that stupid. He knew full well about my habitual paranoia… yes, I had taught him not to attempt such escapades with me.

It was then that I saw the mark on the tree next to me. Clean, precise, thin… it was a cut that could have only originated from the blade of a katana.

I swallowed, cleaning me face of all emotions. There was a glimmer of light above me and I stopped, inhaling loudly. I tightened my grip on the picnic basket, my knuckles turning white as I willed away my nerves. I couldn't bring myself to greet him, not that I needed to. He spoke before I was able to continue.

"You almost got me that time."

I was barely able to move before he was beside me. We stood next to each other, facing opposite directions, our eyes not meeting. I could hear him breathing evenly; he didn't seem nervous at all.

"You're late," I noted, my voice even and neutral. "You were supposed to be here over an hour ago. What happened?"

Sasuke frowned, but I wasn't afraid. Even from my peripheral vision, I could tell that he was dissatisfied with something other than me… which was a great relief, on my part. Yes, I had learned to read him over time. He remained silent, so I didn't press him further. I knew he didn't like commentary on his flaws… although I was surprised. Punctuality was hardly an issue with Uchiha Sasuke.

I flinched slightly when he put his hand on my shoulder. His head turned to me, and our eyes met in silence.

"The way you look… I almost thought you had come here to haunt me," he whispered. I smirked, gingerly picking his hand off of my shoulder.

"Well then, aren't you lucky?" I replied, my voice just as quiet. "Instead of inauspicious warnings, I brought you your dinner. I trust it will be better than anything Orochimaru has to offer."

Sasuke sighed, taking the basket from me. "A sad truth, Sayo-chan… It seems ages ago that I last had a well-tasting meal."

I frowned. "The way you say that almost makes me regret leaving you alone with that horrible man," I opened the basket and pulled out a container. He took it from me and unraveled the string that held it together. Opening the steaming dish, he smelled it once.

"It smells delicious," he commented, although the monotony in his voice suggested otherwise. However, I knew that he was sincere… or, at least, as sincere as he ever was with me. I turned away, slightly insulted. The least he could do was _try_ to make it look like he was eager to eat. On the other hand, being around Choji gave me enough proof that my cooking was sublime, so I didn't really expect much. But a simple 'thank you' would have been pleasant…

"You're angry with me," he said from somewhere behind me. I turned around in shock. There he was, sitting in the high branches of a tree, his katana balancing motionlessly on his knees as he put his chopsticks into the vegetable stew that I had brought him, amongst other things. He eyed me with intense focus and concentration, as if figuring me out would tell him the answer to life's biggest questions. I broke his gaze, looking down at the ground. He was doing it again. Observing me. Like Orochimaru. But why would he do that? He knew it made me nervous…

"You're wrong," I said bluntly, lifting my gaze up to look at him. He was so far above me that I had to crane my neck to look into his eyes. "I could never be angry with you."

Putting the last bite into his mouth, he frowned again. This time I was frightened. I had said something to upset him, and now I would have to answer to his disenchantment.

There was a slight pause as he looked up from his meal. His brows furrowed. "That's a lie," he said, tossing the bowl and the chopsticks in my direction. The porcelain dish shattered at my feet, and the utensils lodged themselves into the tree behind me with a loud _thock_.

But I didn't flinch.

If I had done so, then my time with my brother would have been over. Sasuke didn't tolerate weakness. I didn't tolerate weakness, especially not from myself. What a disgrace it would have been. But I no longer felt fear, so there was no reason to want to dodge. I had taken much worse from him, so a scratched face would have hardly been anything compared to the hundreds of needles he had once lodged into my body, or the countless number of my bones he had broken during our training sessions.

"No, it's not," I argued calmly. "Believe your own conscience over my words, but what I say is the truth. I would never be angry with you."

Sasuke jumped down, standing in front of me. He stepped towards me slowly, and I took him in. His dark eyes were reflecting in the moonlight, and his shirt billowed gently in the soft night breeze. The purple rope that held his pants up hung down his side, almost to the ground, and his appearance was not quite as angry as it had been a moment ago. His hair hung loosely around his face as his eyes softened. He seemed almost… remorseful…

"I scared you, didn't I? That's why you won't admit that you're angry," he insisted, sliding his katana back into its sheath. I looked away angrily, remaining silent. I couldn't answer, because denying that he had scared me would have been a lie. And I could never lie to my brother.

"Now you won't speak to me?" he asked in mock insult. "I thought you _wanted_ to see me."

"I still do," I answered, a slight edge decorating my voice. "That notion hasn't changed."

I contemplated taking a step backwards as he approached me even closer, but I decided that such disrespect was uncalled for. The fact that it was making me uncomfortable played no part in this of course, because what I thought was unimportant. But still, I was ashamed for thinking such disrespectful things to begin with.

He stood directly in front of me so that the strands of my hair that were floating gently in the wind were brushing against his bare chest. He put his hand on my shoulder and a slight shiver ran down my spine. They were icy cold, despite the fact that it was rather warm outside. Did that mean that he was nervous, too? Or was he so emotionless that the blood in his body ran cold merely through the frostiness of his heart?

"Sayomi, do you know _why_ I allowed you to join me?" he asked, letting go as I glared at him. He received the warning better than I had expected.

"No," I replied, knowing it's what he wanted to hear. It was a lie, of course; I knew perfectly well why he hadn't killed me yet. "But I feel as though you're about to tell me."

"I accepted Orochimaru's offer because I realized what great potential you had," he answered, putting his hand on his hip. I focused my attention on the rest of the food that sat in the seemingly discarded basket. I contemplated taking something out for myself, but decided I'd rather not go to bed with a full stomach if I wanted to get up early the next day.

"Oh?" I asked, my eyes even and focused. I felt pride in being one of the only people to look into Sasuke's eyes… and live. "And what potential would that have been?"

"When I first saw you, I knew immediately that either one of two things could happen with you," he replied, and I was beginning to suspect that he was getting at something. "Either you would be a total failure and die within the week, or you would survive… Sayomi… in this short time that we have spent together, you have successfully become me."

I paused, my heart beginning to pound. That was perhaps the greatest achievement I had ever been commended on. I grinned childishly, and my joy was met with a hard slap to the side of the face.

"Temē!" I screamed as I landed on the ground, holding my face, and I could feel my cheek turning red. "How _dare_ you touch me like that?!"

"I can do whatever the hell I want with you," he replied coldly, and I scowled.

"No you can't, Sasuke, you arrogant bastard," I snapped, brushing myself off as I stood, wondering what the point of this whole meeting was to begin with. "You're not God, you can't rule the universe. And even if you could, I sure as hell wouldn't let you rule _me_."

"Watch me," he growled as we faced off. "You're _my_ sister."

_This is getting nowhere…_ I thought as I glowered at my brother maliciously. _One minute, he's the caring older sibling, and then I get some garbage like this. Either he thinks this is a game, or he sees it as one big power play…_

"What are you doing?" I asked, secretly activating my Sharingan underneath my hair, which was slowly beginning to droop over my face in its usual fashion. I hoped he wouldn't notice, or I'd be in dire straits. It didn't seem so… Sasuke wasn't showing any visible reaction.

Luckily, I had only one (I thought it had something to do with the fact that I had a replica of my chakra hidden somewhere, in one of my seals, and my internal Sharingan had gotten split up in the extraction process), so I was able to hide it under my hair whenever I used it. Covering it was a habit, really. Admittedly, being with my brother had made me a bit paranoid, so I used it almost nonstop, given that my already immense chakra had a duplicate somewhere, should I ever run out. Using my bangs to hide it was just a habit I had picked up after leaving home.

"Teaching you a lesson," he snarled, and I stepped back, a slight tremor growing in my throat.

"If you do anything to harm me," I warned, "Then all of this training will have been for nothing. The mission would be over, and you would slink back to Orochimaru a failure. You need me and my skills to finish this."

I was blatantly refusing to fight him, and I could tell that it was making him think over his actions. His fingers twitched slightly at his side as I let go of my Sharingan. It was unnecessary at this point, and it wouldn't help me in the least if I wasted my chakra on trying to predict his moves, since I was such a fast thinker as it was.

But I wasn't fast enough.

My breath was cut off as he grabbed me by the throat and slammed me against a tree. I dangled above the ground, my feet just grazing the top of the grass as I flailed madly. Sasuke's hair hung over his face as he scowled at me, his eyes hidden from view.

"I don't _need_ you for anything," he hissed, tightening his grip. I would have cried out if I wasn't so irate at his actions. My resentment towards him mixed with my obduracy forced words out of my mouth that I later realized began a spiral in our relationship that would eventually lead to my complete annihilation.

"You… bastard…" I choked. "Of course you… need me… you're a… man after all…"

He gripped me tighter, and spots bloomed across my vision.

Then he let go.

I fell to the floor, gasping for air. Never before had I been this close to death while still conscious. Make no mistake; Sasuke had near brought me to my end on multiple occasions while he trained me, but that was all dependent on whom you asked. In my opinion, he only extended my capabilities and stamina… but that was all beside the point.

"Orochimaru was right," Sasuke replied as I attempted to pick myself up. "You women really are only good for one thing. I laud you for knowing your place."

I sighed inwardly. Now I'd done it. His opinion of me was now at its lowest; ironically, he had never praised me so frequently in one night.

"Is there… anything else you need me for?" I asked quietly, repressing tears. I hadn't cried in a very long time, and I didn't intend on breaking that habit now.

"Your progress," he replied, darting into the branches of the tree where he had first appeared to me.

"Everything is going according to plan," I answered softly. "If anyone suspects me, they aren't doing anything about it. So far, I've made myself known to almost the entire village. I welcome everyone to talk to me, and I approach those who are suspicious of me."

"And Naruto?"

"We are acquaintances as of right now," I answered. "But our rather distant, neutral relationship won't last very long. He'll be wrapped around my finger in no time, this I can promise you. I intend to go to work in the morn."

"Sakura? Kakashi?"

"Sakura is much too envious of me to suspect anything plausible and Kakashi… if he knows anything, he won't say," I replied, walking over to the basket. Sasuke jumped down in front of me and took my chin in his hand, pushing my face up to look at him. I could see a reflection of my face in his black eyes, and there was only one emotion splayed across my features: defeat.

"You are… perfect," he said softly, and I thought I might melt within his smooth voice.

"Hardly as perfect as you…" I whispered in reply, and my eyes grew glassy as he pulled me back into his control. My mind protested severely; his actions weren't making sense in the least. The first instant, he was on the left, and then he darted over to the right without a moment's notice. But I didn't care. He was in control now.

"You have one week. I expect results," he said, stroking my cheek.

"Have I ever failed you?" I asked.

"Say it," he ordered, and I smiled.

"Daisuki…" I whispered. "My body belongs to you now, brother."

[-]

I returned to my room, wearier than I had been in a very long time. If there was one thing that was certain, then it was that Sasuke knew how to take the life out of me, no matter the situation. Conversations, if there ever were any with him, were usually incredibly strenuous, and training with him left me sleeping for days, usually in a hospital setting. Even our little rendezvous in the Forest of Death left me tired and wishing that my apartment wasn't on the third floor, and that I didn't have to climb through the window in order to get in. My starry-eyed trance had worn off the moment I had entered the city again, and I knew he had placed me under a genjutsu… not that I minded, of course.

Making sure that no one was watching, I scaled the drainpipe that ran underneath my window and quietly slid through my unlocked entryway, landing with a thud on my bed before clicking the latch shut. Not bothering to brush my hair or wash my face, I summoned the Sachi chakra and let her encase my body before shedding the elaborate clothes and stuffing them into the bottom dresser drawer where no one would ever find them.

Perhaps it was something in the air, or maybe I had just been deprived of sleep for too long, but you could be sure that by the time my head hit the pillow and the first rays of sunshine began to shine through the glass, I was fast asleep.

* * *

**Hello, readers! Just a quick note, in case there has been any confusion so far, the notices of time after the chapter introductions - you know, the bold and italic ones - those are meant to show passage of time _from the ending of the previous chapter, _not the chapter introduction. It helps to show where the story is so far. Sorry if I didn't clarify that earlier! Thank you for understanding, and please review! **


	10. Chapter 10 - The First Mission

_Leiko and Haru waited impatiently by the entrance of the village, their backs leaning against each other as they stared at the ground with equal boredom._

"_She is late," the strange young shinobi commented, placing his hand on the ground next to him. Leiko reached out behind her and grasped it, interlacing her fingers with his. _

"_I know," she said with a smirk. "But at least she's not here to bother us."_

"_You say that like it is a good thing… they say humans under the age of fifteen should not develop feelings of our magnitude or else risk premature death, or something of the sort. Perhaps Sayomi is more beneficial to us than you think. Her constant interference—"_

"_Oh, shut up, Haru," Leiko said with a broad smile, and Haru hushed instantly. "Who cares that we're still kids? There's something called puppy love, you know that, right? And puppy love always turns into real love once we 'humans' reach that age." She let go of his hand, turned around, and kissed him on the cheek, watching in amusement as his pale face turned red from embarrassment._

"_See?" she said with a smug grin. "You like it."_

"_Leiko! Haru!"_

_The kids looked up the road and saw Sayomi approaching, hand in hand with Kankuro. Gaara, Temari, and two of the Kazekage's bodyguards were following them._

"_Seeeeeeeee?" Leiko teased, poking Haru in the shoulder. "Sayomi's going out with Kankuro, and _that's_ allowed." Haru rolled his eyes as Leiko flounced over to the only adult she recognized. She clasped her hands in front of her and smiled. _

"_Yūra-sensei, thank you for accompanying us on this most important mission," she said politely, and he nodded in approval. Of course Sayomi would convince Yūra to come. He was her mentor, after all. She turned to the other man and gave a similar low bow, which both Sayomi and Haru followed. "Thank you, Stranger-sama, for coming as well. I'm sure those three are very grateful," she added, nodding towards the Subaku siblings. The man only gave a grunt, which matched Gaara's as he crossed his arms. Yeesh. What a creeper. _

"_Alright!" Sayomi said with a cheerful grin, which made Gaara's mood even fouler, it seemed. "Let's get going! These Chūnin Exams aren't gonna wait forever!" _

_**The next morning…**_

_I smell something really good._

That's the first thing that came into my head when I woke up. I yawned and stretched, sitting up in my bed and looking around. Yep, my room was basically still a mess, but I didn't really care. My first priority was finding out where that smell was coming from… that really good, tasty smell that reminded me of the fact that I hadn't eaten dinner the night before.

My stomach growled, and I ordered it to shut up. Getting up out of bed, I followed my nose until it led me to the door. The door… that smelled really yummy…

_Get it together, man! _I thought as I turned the door handle. I blinked a couple of times. There, in all her annoyingness, was Sachi with a tray of food in her hands. Her eyes were wide with surprise, and she stared at me with her lips in an 'oo' shape. She paused for a moment, and then her eyes broke out into a grin.

"Morning, Naruto!" she said, shoving the tray into my face. "I brought you some breakfast!"

I looked at all of the food and my mouth began to water. I reached out to grab a dumpling, but she pulled the tray away from me and smirked.

"Whaaat?" I asked, totally annoyed. She smirked even more, sticking out her tongue.

"Don't you know any manners?" she asked, her eyes squeezed shut as she smiled. "If a stranger appears on your doorstep with an offering of food, it is only customary to welcome them into your home as a guest."

"Yeah, except you're not a stranger," I replied, attempting to take more food. But she held it out of my reach. "You're on my team. Now fork it over!"

She clicked her tongue and pushed past me into my apartment.

"Hey! Get back here with the goods!" I shouted, attempting to grab her, but she ducked out of my reach, instead waltzing into the kitchen like she was in her own goddamn house. She set the tray onto the table and looked around, putting her hands on her hips.

"Man, this place is a mess," she commented, shaking her head. I turned, rubbing the back of my head sheepishly.

"Yeah, well… I haven't really had the chance to clean up yet," I answered, kicking a box of scrolls back under the table where she had put the food. "I spent all day training yesterday, so I couldn't really do anything. Speaking of which, where the heck were you all day?"

"Oh, you know… doing some stuff," Sachi answered, sitting down and pulling an onigiri out of her sleeve. She took a bite and began to munch on it happily. I sat across from her and grabbed the tray.

"Boy, you're kinda snatchy, aren't you?" she said, her eyes closed as she took another bite. I gritted my teeth, but the smell of the food made me calm down.

_Stupid girls_… I thought, slurping the miso soup that she had brought me. I paused after the first sip.

"Wow, this is… really good!" I commented, my thought from before vanishing.

"Of course it is," Sachi replied, finishing her onigiri. "I made it."

My eye twitched as she said that, and I slammed the empty bowl down, jumping up and pointing my finger at her.

"Just who exactly do you think you are?" I shouted, my fist clenching at my side while my other hand poked at the air. "You think you can just come in here and do whatever the hell you want, say whatever the hell you want, and act like you're the most amazing thing in the world! This is still _my_ apartment, and I can kick you out if I want to!"

Sachi looked up as she poured herself a cup of tea and grinned, putting the pot back down. "Okay!" she squeaked cheerfully. She stood up, taking the tray with her.

"Wait… what are you doing?" I asked. She smirked over her shoulder.

"Taking _my_ food and _my_ tray back to _my_ apartment, where I'm gonna eat it all by myself, and you'll just have to settle for cereal with milk, which should be spoiled since it's been on your countertop since yesterday morning," she replied matter-of-factly. "I would think that being sixteen should have taught you that milk goes bad if it isn't put in the refrigerator."

"I know that, I know that!" I insisted. Sachi shrugged, heading out of the door.

"I never said you didn't; I said you _should_," she answered with an annoyingly girly nick of her shoulder. I ran in front of her, blocking her from going any further. There was meat in those dumplings, and I knew it would be a waste to let her eat them in my place, since she never ate anything as it was and the food would probably end up in the garbage. I grabbed the tray.

"Gimme the food!" I said, tugging on the tray. Sachi tugged harder, pulling it towards her.

"No way! It's mine, get your own!" she snapped. Something about her girly tone and cute little face made me want to fight with her more.

"But you were going to give it to me _anyways_, so what's the point in wasting it on your_self_?" I argued, pulling it back.

"Let _go_, Naruto! Let go and… grow up…!"

"No, _you_ let go!" I shouted back.

"No, _you_!"

"No, _you_!"

"No, _YOU_!" Sachi squeaked. Her final yank sent the tray flying over her head towards the table. Food was sailing through the air as we cried out in shock.

"The food!" I shouted, lunging for the tray.

"The mess!" Sachi answered with similar passion, and ran after me.

The next few seconds were probably some of the most amazing seconds I have ever had in my life. Sachi was way faster than me, so she managed to catch the food and put it back on the table using her incredible speed. I, on the other hand, slipped on some spilled tea and skidded right into her. Wait, scratch that. I skidded forward, knocked her over, and landed in her _boobs_.

Right when Sakura walked in.

"HENTAI~!"

Long story short, after the pink-haired demon had dragged us all the way to the Hokage's office by our ears, Sachi and I were just about ready to kill each other.

"Sakura-chaaaaaaaan…" Sachi whined, rubbing her sore earlobe. "Did you have to pull on my ears that hard? It _hurt_."

"You'll be alright," Sakura answered coldly.

"What happened to you guys?" Tsunade asked, looking us over. I glared at Sachi, and she glared at me before we both pointed at each other in silence. Tsunade shook her head.

"Great. I thought we'd be getting some talent around here, and not another Naruto," she mumbled and I growled.

"Why does it always have to be me, huh?" I asked loudly. "This one over here started the whole thing by bringing me breakfast-"

"_Which_, by the way, was meant as a gesture of _kindness_ and not means to start a stupid fight!" Sachi interjected, poking me in the forehead. I slapped her hand away.

"Listen _you_! I-"

"ALRIGHT IF YOU DON'T SHUT UP RIGHT NOW I'M GONNA SEND YOU BOTH TO DO HARD LABOR INSTEAD OF GIVING YOU A REAL MISSION!" Tsunade shouted, banging her fist on the desk. We stared at her in shock and disgrace.

"Yes, ma'am…" we mumbled in unison, hanging our heads. Tsunade grumbled something unintelligible and I looked back over at Sachi, who was fiddling with her hair.

"Alright, here we go, a nice C-class delivery mission," Tsunade said, pulling out a scroll. She frowned as she looked over the assignment.

"That's weird…" she said, and Sachi looked up.

"I like weird things!" she answered with a giggle. "Especially if they're dangerous!"

"Well then, this should be perfect for you," the Hokage said with a smirk. "Whoever submitted this request submitted it anonymously. They want a package delivered to someone who lives in the outskirts of the Land of the Wind. Pay is to be collected upon arrival."

"_Kaze no Kuni?!_" Sakura and I yelped simultaneously.

"YAAAY!" Sachi squealed. "I get to go back home! … Or, at least, close to home." She ran over to Lady Tsunade and hugged her tightly. "Thankyouthankyouthankyouthan kyou! I've wanted to go home from the moment I left!"

"This _isn't_… that _kind_… of _mission_, Sachi," Tsunade replied, prying the girl off of her. "You all have a time limit, so there's no room for sightseeing or detours. The person wants it submitted in three days tops, which isn't a lot of time to cover this kind of distance."

Sachi smiled. "Oh please, it's just a little package. We should be fine, Lady Tsunade! Did they say who the package was for?" she replied.

"Yes… well, no, not really. They just requested for a shinobi team to hand-deliver a package to the residence of a certain Mr. Bento in a small village on the cliffside bordering the country."

"Sorry I'm late."

We turned around just as Kakashi-sensei entered the room.

"Good morning, Sensei!" Sachi said, waving cheerfully.

"Oh. Hi there," he replied monotonously. "Did I miss anything important?"

"Not a thing!" she answered. "Sakura, Naruto, and I just got a new mission! I'm going home, can you believe it?" She was almost bouncing up and down with happiness. "We get to deliver a package to Mr. Bento, and it's really cool and mysterious because whoever submitted it did it anonymously, and Lady Tsunade says that it might be hard to do because there's so little time, and… and… and I'm just so _excited_!"

"Is that so?" Kakashi-sensei replied, raising an eyebrow. He turned to me. "And what about you? Are you ready to go on another mission?"

Sachi giggled. "Yeah, after your last one was a total _fail_, teehee!"

"Ugh, shut _up_!" I shouted, balling my fists, and Sachi smiled innocently. I glared at her. "How did you even find out about that, huh? It's not like you were _there_."

"Oh, you know…" she said, flipping her wrist casually. "Word gets 'round."

I growled at her, turning back to Kakashi-sensei. "Yeah, I'm ready. Bring it on!"

"What about you, Sakura?" he asked. "Do you think you can handle these two?"

"Oh yeah," she replied, cracking her knuckles with one of those evil smiles on her face. "No problem at all, Sensei."

[-]

"Ugh, what is _taking_ her so long?!" Naruto asked impatiently. "I wanna get outta here already!"

"Well, we did say eleven o' clock, and it's only ten fifty," I answered, leaning against the column of the gate. "Maybe next time you should tell her to come as soon as possible."

"Hi guys!"

"GAAAAAH!"

"What was that for?" Naruto asked, turning red, and Sachi giggled.

"Did I scare you or something?" she asked, and I grinned at her, pointing at Naruto.

"Nah. He just felt like jumping twenty feet into the air," I explained, and she giggled again.

"That's not true!" Naruto insisted. "Not even a baby would be scared of you!"

Sachi shrugged, pulling out the package that we were supposed to deliver. "I know I kept you guys waiting, but I had to go pick up the package from the deliveries office in the Hokage Tower."

"That's okay, we weren't waiting long, although Naruto seems to think otherwise," I replied, taking it from her and examining it. It looked pretty normal, a small box with the character for 'Bento' written on it and a piece of brown twine tying it together. It was relatively light, so transporting it wouldn't be a problem.

"Hey, gimme, I wanna see it!" Naruto said, reaching for it. I held it behind my back.

"No way!" I said defensively. "You'll probably break it or something!"

"Will not!" he protested, and I scowled at him. Suddenly, Sachi snatched it out from behind my back.

"How about _I_ hold it, since _I'm_ the one leading this mission?" she suggested, smiling at us.

"Hey, how come you get to lead the mission? What about Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto protested.

"Yeah, that's a little weird," I admitted. "Why isn't he coming with us?"

"Oh, that's easy," Sachi replied with a grin. She put her hand on my shoulder. "As for Kakashi-sensei… he left right this morning. And for the mission, Sakura and I are both Chūnin; technically, we can lead C-class missions without the presence of a Jōnin. I don't know about you, Naruto, but we're all set. And since Lady Tsunade trusts me to deliver the package in a timely matter, she assigned me as head of this mission!"

"Why don't you just deliver the package your_self_ then?" Naruto hissed.

"Why don't _you_ go back to the _Academy_, genin?" Sachi chirruped cheerfully before heading to the exit.

Naruto glared at her and I giggled. "You kinda held yourself open for that one, Naruto," I commented.

"No one asked you!" he replied angrily, which caused me to giggle harder. It had been a while since Naruto had taken a hit to his annoying ego, and it felt good to know that I wasn't the only one who could keep his opinion of himself in check.

As Sachi hurried us along, I began to realize that my initial opinion of her had changed for the better. True, she was incredibly annoying, talkative, silly, and immature, but despite all of that, she was still someone I would characterize as a good person. Yes, she liked playing practical jokes, and yes, she was a little too dramatic at times, but Naruto seemed to like her and to be honest, I was beginning to like her, too. I had only known her for three full days (not counting the day that we first met), and I usually tended to keep a professional distance from people for about two weeks. But something about her made me warm up to her immediately… or rather, I began treating her like I would treat Naruto, which was as warm as it was ever going to get. I contemplated whether or not it was her cuteness, or if it was something else, but everything about her made me want to protect her from danger, like she was my little sister or something. Now, mind you, I'm not saying that she was defenseless or anything, but she seemed so fragile and innocent, like a little kid, it was hard to imagine that she could kick butt like she said she could.

I hated girls like that.

They were so annoying! They were always getting in the way, seeming so helpless and naive that no one would suspect them of anything. They didn't have any problems, were absolutely faultless at everything, didn't have any quirks or weird diseases… and were so irritating. But Sachi wasn't a Mary Sue, at least not completely. She was… something else, although I couldn't quite say what. Under all of that shoujo charm and grace and whatever else she had, something had to be wrong with her. She had to have a secret.

No one was that perfect.

[-]

What seemed like an eternity later, Naruto and I were out of breath, to say the least. We had been trying our best to keep up with our speeding energyball of a teammate, and were doing pretty well until I began falling behind. Knowing Naruto, he would follow her to the ends of the earth if it meant proving that he was better than her, so I hoped that it would be Sachi who noticed that we were beginning to lose energy.

_This is insane!_ I thought, straining to keep up with them. _How can anyone run for this long, and at this pace? Does she do this all the time? Gosh, we must be halfway there already…_

Suddenly, Sachi jumped down from the treetops through which we had been travelling, and came to a stop. Naruto and I quickly followed, and we were breathing heavily as we stopped to take a break. I rested my hands on my knees for a moment and looked up at her. She was cheerful as always, and it didn't seem as though what we had just run had been anything more than a jog to her.

"Man, how long have we been running?" Naruto asked, untying his forehead protector and wiping his brow with his sleeve.

"Hm…" Sachi answered, a thoughtful expression on her face. Suddenly, she grinned.

"Be right back!" she squeaked, and darted into the trees faster than I could blink. I looked around.

We were in the deep woods, seemingly in the middle of nowhere (although Sachi seemed to know exactly where she was going), and it didn't look like there was any kind of road nearby. We had been travelling through the same scenery ever since we left Konoha, and it was beginning to get a little monotonous. Just the thought of the way back made me groan.

"Man…" Naruto mumbled, falling backwards and leaning against a tree. I sat next to him, and I could tell that he was running low on energy.

"Are you alright?" I asked, taking note of the exhausted way that he was lolling against the trunk.

"Yeah," he answered, rolling his head to the side to face me. "But forget training. Nothing in the world could have prepared me for _her_. It's like she's made of _lightning_ or something!"

"Like Sasuke?" I asked sarcastically, and he scowled.

"No way. He may be able to last for a while, but at least he's not annoying as hell."

"Oh, come on, she's not that bad, is she? I mean, she's on our team now, so you should at least make the effort of _trying_ to like her. She brought you breakfast this morning, doesn't that count for something? And think of it this way: instead of running like hell, how about a chance to improve your speed and stamina?" I replied, trying to keep things light. "Believe it or not, I think Sachi may actually be good for us. I might even learn how to cook and do my own laundry!"

"Yeah, but that's girly stuff," Naruto huffed.

"I think it would be a relief if you learned how to do your laundry so that I don't always have to make my mom do it for you," I mumbled. "And besides," I continued, "Sachi could totally teach you how to talk to girls, since you're basically a loser in that department. I'd offer, but I'm too busy learning how to talk to guys."

"I'm back!"

"GAAAAH!"

"Did I scare you guys again?" Sachi asked in disbelief. She put her hands on her hips as Naruto and I began to pry ourselves loose from each other. "Boy, you guys have got to be the jumpiest shinobi I've ever met," she commented, plunking herself down in front of us. She grinned, holding out her arms, one up and one to the side. The way she did reminded me of a clock…

"It's two o'clock in the afternoon, guys! We've been running for three whole hours! Aren't you proud of yourselves?" she squealed happily. "And, as a reward, I brought this!"

She took her little bag off of her back and put it onto the ground. Pulling open the string, she produced three variably sized bento boxes. Just the thought of the contents made my mouth water, and the food was still warm, too.

"Awesome! Lunch!" Naruto cheered, grabbing the biggest box and opening the lid. The steam hit his face and he sighed. Sachi handed him a pair of chopsticks and smiled.

"I represented every major food group in that one, although I put a little more rice in to fill it up. Luckily that big one was actually for you," she said, handing me the slightly smaller one. "As for you, Sakura, I know you're not that big on meat, so I put tons of roasted vegetables and peanut sauce with your rice. There's a little bit of chicken sprinkled into the rice every once in a while, but I didn't think that you would mind."

"That sounds great," I answered, opening the lid and staring in wonder at the way that she had sorted the food in such a creative manner.

Unlike Naruto, Sachi and I were actually taking our time to eat, so that there was more room for conversation.

"So, how did you learn to cook this well?" I asked, sampling the seasoned rice. It was delicious, of course.

Sachi opened her own bento, and I was shocked to find nothing more than an onigiri and spoonful of steamed vegetables that didn't even look the least bit appetizing.

"Well," she replied, popping a piece of carrot into her mouth, "At the orphanage, we girls had to learn how to take care of ourselves, the boys, and each other. Our house mom, Koruna-sensei, had to teach us all of the household stuff when we were really young so that we would have a lot of time to practice," Sachi giggled. "She said that every girl that knows how to cook well and clean up neatly will end up marrying a rich husband. That's why the boys got to go to ninja school before we did."

"That doesn't seem very fair," I protested. "Girls should get the same treatment as boys!"

Sachi shrugged, eating a slice of water chestnut. "The way I see it, making young girls learn all of this stuff at an early age gives them more room to improve in other things when they get older. I mean, it's so much easier to learn things when you're little as opposed to when you're our age. Getting the basics down then helped me to make a whole lot of money as soon as I left home. Of course, you have to have the right connections, but my point is that most of the girls that left with me who didn't go study ninjutsu are making more money than the boys, who are still training at the Academy."

"Did you train at the Academy?" I asked. Sachi swallowed the rice that she had just put into her mouth and shook her head.

"My best friend went into the academy, and so did I, but eventually I got a private sensei," she replied nonchalantly.

_Well, aren't you lucky…_ I thought with a bitter edge, cheerfully taking a bite of my food.

"Wait, how come you have to take care of the boys?" Naruto asked, swallowing the last bit of his bento. Sachi giggled.

"If the boys tried to cook dinner, the entire orphanage would burn down," she replied with a grin, sinking her teeth into her onigiri. She chewed for a second before continuing. "And it's not like you guys volunteer to clean the house. You just go off and play soldier while we do all the work."

"Good point," I said, turning to Naruto. "When was the last time you changed your bed sheets? Or your towel, for that matter."

Naruto scratched his head. "Uh… a month ago?"

"Ew!" Sachi replied, finishing her onigiri and closing her bento box. "When we get home, I'm going through your laundry."

"No way!" he protested. "I can do that myself, I'm not a kid!"

"Somehow, I don't really believe you…" I muttered.

"Sooooo… is everyone done?" Sachi asked before Naruto could respond to my comment. I nodded, closing the bento and handing it back to her.

"It was delicious," I said with a smile. "As always."

"Why thank you!" she said cheerfully. "I actually managed to whip that up in less than twenty minutes. The vegetables took longer than I had expected, though."

"Hey, did you bring any dessert?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"Naruto!" I scolded, and he flinched.

"No Naruto, I'm sorry. I have more food, but I was going to save that for dinner tonight if we didn't find a place to stay until then," Sachi answered. "But, according to this map that I got from Lady Tsunade, there should be a hot springs hotel on our way there, maybe a… four hour run?"

"More running?" Naruto and I asked simultaneously, and Naruto turned red.

"Oh, don't worry, I won't go so fast this time!" Sachi answered with a wink. "And the last part of the run is actually a hike up a mountain to the hotel."

"Wait, so Lady Tsunade gave you a map?" I asked. Sachi nodded, pulling a scroll out of the scroll pocket on her vest.

"She said that it came with the instructions for the delivery."

She rolled it open and scanned it with her eyes before turning it around. It was a jumble of hastily drawn lines, an enormous blotch meant to represent to forest, and three lines going through it, all of which congregated at two points (in two differently colored blotches) before they converged at the final destination. The red one (the one that I assumed we had been following) led directly through the forest and seemed to be the shortest route. The second line was blue, and ran in a relatively even way around the outer edge of the forest. This route, judging from the way that the map was drawn, seemed the longest. The third, white line went in a jagged path through the forest, remaining close to the outer edge. From what I could tell, this was probably the road that Sachi had been talking about, since the red and the white lines converged shortly before reaching the first point in a gray blotch which I assumed to be the mountain hot spring hotel.

"I don't get it…" Naruto mumbled, stroking his chin.

"It's a map, dumbass, what's there not to get?" I replied quietly.

"We are currently… here," Sachi said, pointing to a seemingly random spot on the red line, although it looked to be about halfway to the first point, which was centered in a gray blotch I assumed to represent the mountains. How she read that illegible map was a mystery to me, but the way she spoke made it pretty clear that she knew what she was doing. She pointed to the final congregation spot, marked with a black X. "We have three days to get to this spot, which is right on the outskirts of the Hidden Sand. Apparently, Mr. Bento's house is on a cliff. Anyways," she continued, putting her finger on the first congregation point, "This is the hot spring place that we'll be staying at. Tomorrow morning we'll be going mostly through the mountains to point B, which is located at the beginnings of the desert. Finally, we'll be going to these weird brown cliffs to deliver Mr. Bento's package."

"I think this whole _mission_ is weird…" Naruto mumbled as Sachi put the scroll away and we began to pack up our things.

"Sachi, are you sure about this? This guy seems pretty… I dunno… odd," I commented as she began to stretch (something she always did before she exerted any kind of energy).

"Oh, c'mon guys," Sachi answered dismissively, flexing her fingers. "I said the same thing to Lady Tsunade before we left, and she assured me that you two are the most promising young shinobi that Konoha has ever seen, not to mention the fact that I'm pretty badass, too. We'll be fine! And if we're not, I promise I won't run and hide like I usually do, but stay and fight with you guys, okay? So quit worrying!"

And with that, she darted into the trees, leaving us no choice but to follow her.

* * *

**Congratulations on making it through the first ten chapters! I'm so sorry that nothing extraordinary has happened yet, but soon, Sayomi and Sasuke will put their plan into action! Their relationship will evolve, as will Sayomi and Naruto's, but you must keep reading! Again, thank you so much for staying with me! I love you all, and please leave reviews! Many, many kisses! **

**~ Sweep  
**


	11. Chapter 11 - The Hot Springs

**Hello, and welcome to the second segment of the The Art of Sacrifice! The next ten chapters will be more interesting, I hope, and I'm working hard to keep updating at a regular interval! In this segment, the relationship between Sayomi, Naruto, Sasuke, and Leiko will be explained in detail a little more, and maybe (I think) you might get a little more insight into Sayomi's horrible past! In this chapter, there's an interesting development between Naruto and Sayomi - you'll see if you keep reading! Please continue to review and enjoy what I have written for you! Thank you so much! **

**~Sweep**

* * *

"_Kankuro likes you," Leiko said casually one morning as she and Sayomi headed down to the village. Sayomi, who was a few steps lower than Leiko on the seemingly endless staircase, looked up and grinned. _

"_That's dumb," she replied. "Why would he like me? We're just friends."_

"_Says you," Leiko argued. "I mean, come ON. It's totally obvious that he's into you. You don't even notice that stuff because you're too busy being so… innocent."_

"_And what's wrong with that?" Sayomi protested, stopping short and crossing her arms in protest. "Not everyone has to be a grown-up, mature thing like you, Lei-chan. And since when do you know so much about boys? Last time I checked, the only guy you ever talk to is Haru-kun."_

"_But at least I talk to him," Leiko replied, pushing past her and continuing her descent. "Believe it or not, Haru is a boy, too, and he's totally convinced Kankuro wants to bed you as soon as possible."_

"_WHAT?!" Sayomi shrieked, her cry echoing through the tunnel stairwell. "B-bed me? Don't be ridiculous! You know I have absolutely nothing to do with boys!" She ran to catch up with her friend, who continued on as though nothing out of the ordinary had been said. "And don't forget, I'm twelve! Kankuro can't want that from me, I'm still a kid! Just because I look older than I actually am doesn't mean anything… right?"_

"_Lolita complex?" Leiko suggested, which got her an angry glare from Sayomi, who was definitely _not_ a Lolita. Leiko sighed. "Fact remains that I'm with Haru on this one," she continued. "Kankuro wants you, it's plain as day. Question is, do you want him?"_

"_Not like that, I don't!" Sayomi replied adamantly. "I have absolutely no intention of ever getting together with Kankuro for anything other than plain old hanging out. And besides, aren't you the one that's constantly telling me how worthless men are? How their lazy and aggravating, and totally dissatisfied no matter what you do for them? Way to practice what you preach, Lei-chan!"_

"_Would you hug him if he was feeling lonely?"_

"_Of course!"_

"_Would you kiss him?"_

"_Lei-chan!"_

_Leiko shrugged. "Just saying."_

_**Later that evening…**_

We arrived at the hotel just as it was about to get dark.

"Ugh, you guys are _so_ out of shape. My sensei made me climb the cliffs around the village with one arm behind my back!" Sachi babbled, and I rolled my eyes.

"Well, maybe we all can't have a private teacher like you, Sachi," I said, wiping the sweat out of my face as Sakura caught up to me. She looked like she was about to pass out, that's how tired she was.

"Please, you guys act like having a private teacher made all the difference in the world," she answered, pushing open the door and walking inside. "You had Kakashi-sensei when you were genin, right? It's no different than what I did."

There was a pretty lady sitting behind the counter, looking over something on a clipboard. As soon as we walked in, she smiled.

"Goodness, you two look tired," she commented as she looked at me and Sakura. Her head turned to Sachi and she grinned. "You, on the other hand, don't seem the least bit weary. Why the difference? You three look like you're on the same team."

"They don't have a lot of stamina," Sachi answered, blowing it off like it was nothing. I gritted my teeth.

"Listen, sugar cube," I hissed. "First, you make us run through the forest at top speed for six hours, hike up a goddamn mountain for one and a half, and then you tell us that we have no stamina? Something is seriously wrong with you."

Sachi huffed. "If we took _your_ tempo, it would take us a week to get there, and the delivery was ordered for three days."

"Why you little…!"

"Please, please, no hostility here!" the pretty girl said softly, and I stopped growling. She smiled again. "Our hotel is a place for tranquility, not tension!" She turned to Sachi. "Do you have a reservation?"

"Nope!" she replied cheerfully. "Do I need one?"

The girl flipped through a couple of pages on her clipboard, the smiled again, looking up. "A couple of our rooms on the top floor are open, if you want to take a look."

"Do they have a view?" she asked, and the girl nodded, coming out from behind the desk and motioning for us to follow her up the staircase in the back. I groaned. More walking…

"A very beautiful one, at that," she replied after a while, "Although I would highly urge you to not take your time settling into the scenery, because the baths tend to get rather crowded in the evenings, when the rejuvenating properties of the mountains are at their peaks."

"We'll keep that in mind, thank you!" Sakura replied with a friendly grin as she was given a room key. I got the other key, and we split into our individual rooms.

_Man, this place is nice!_ I thought, closing the door as I walked in. It was huge, and had a really nice balcony that looked out over the mountaintops. The futon was right underneath the full-length window to the left of the balcony, and next to that was a small cabinet with a mirror on top of it. On the other side of the balcony, there was another, this time circular window towards the ceiling that had little candles on the windowsill. There was a little sliding door that I assumed to be the bathroom across from the bed, and third door that I figured was the linen closet or something.

"Naruto! Hey Naruto, come check this out!"

I turned around and walked outside onto the balcony. My eyes bulged when I saw what Sachi was doing.

The balcony that belonged to their room was pretty close to the one that belonged to mine, so Sachi (of course) had to be the idiot and do a split across the two railings, not to mention the fact that our balconies were directly above this huge mountain-y abyss thing.

"Look, Naruto! I'm a bridge!" she said cheerfully as she wobbled back and forth dangerously.

"Gah, get down from there you idiot!" I snapped, grabbing her hand. "You're gonna kill yourself!"

"Awz, so you _do_ care!" she replied with a happy grin as I pulled her over. I leaned back a little as she came up to my face, smirking like a little kid.

"Uh…" I said, and I knew I was turning red. No, I didn't like her! She was just embarrassing me!

"So are we going to the springs or what?" she asked, poking me in the forehead. She bent over backwards, touching her fingers to the ground before popping back up like some kind of live slinky. "I don't know about you, but my muscles are _seriously_ tensed up."

"Sachi, where _are_ you?" I heard Sakura yell from inside of the other room. Sachi blinked.

"That's my cue!" she said cheerfully. "I'll wait for you downstairs in the lobby!"

She did a few backflips and (with some kind of miracle) ended up on the other side in one piece. My hands started to shake as I thought about how close she had been to being mush on the rocks below us. You'd think a cutsie little priss like that would show a little fear every once in a while… either that or she was dumb as a doornail, which I highly doubted.

Twenty minutes later, the sun was set, and I headed down to the lobby, ready to soak away all the tension that that climb had cost me.

"NARUTOOO!"

"Sachi, don't…!"

I fell backwards as she lunged at me, hugging me around the neck. My eye twitched slightly as Sakura came down the hall.

"See? I told you he was just late. Even _he's_ not stupid enough to do half the things you said he would," she said casually, prying Sachi off of me. My head was spinning. Sachi just… hugged me… out of nowhere…!

"Wake up, man," Sakura said, bonking me in the head, and I jerked back into reality. That was probably the weirdest thing that's ever happened to me in a… pretty long time.

"How long were you guys waiting for me?" I asked, kinda dazed.

"Seven whole minutes," Sakura replied sarcastically. "Sachi just worries too much."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm going to the hot spring. See you in half an hour," I said, waving my hand towards them and heading to the male section.

Once I was safely on the other side of the fence, I let myself sink into the hot water with a loud sigh.

_Man, this is what I've been missing…_ I thought happily as I felt my stress basically melting away. _If Sachi's really got the financial goods like she says she does, then I'm definitely gonna keep an eye out for her… _

"… So what do you think about Naruto? You two seem to get along pretty well."

_What the…?_ I wondered before I got the fact that I was right by the fence that separated the men from the women. _Sakura and Sachi! And they're… talking about me…!_

"He's alright."

_Yup, that's definitely Sachi. I'd recognize that mousy voice anywhere,_ I thought, swimming a little closer to the fence.

"Oh, come on. He's _alright_? Looks to me like you like him just a tiny bit more than that, Sachi."

"I do _not_!" she protested, and I heard a splash.

"Hey, cut it out, quit splashing me!" Sakura yelped, and I heard another splash. I chuckled. Pervy Sage Jiraiya would get a kick out of this…

"I don't like Naruto like that, I swear!" Sachi said quietly, almost as if she was afraid of someone overhearing.

"Tee hee hee…" I said quietly, swimming over to a crack in the fence. "Let's see if I can't do a little research by myself, heh…"

"Personally, I think you guys would make a cute couple. Just saying."

"No, I'm sick of guys. They're annoying and complicated, and nothing we do ever makes them happy," she answered, and I sighed. Of course she didn't like me. No girls ever liked me.

"That's not true about all guys, Sachi," Sakura answered cheerfully. "Naruto's not complicated at all. He may not be the most mature guy on the planet, but he's sweet, kind, loyal, and happy… as long as you keep him full of ramen."

"Yeah, and he's kind of cute, too… uh, I mean~!"

"Hey, no worries, we're all girls here," Sakura assured her, and Sachi sighed.

"I know. I just don't want you and Naruto to get the wrong idea about me, that's all," she replied. "I'm afraid he's gonna get all awkward around me and treat me different. I _like_ being his friend… or, at least, being his teammate. I don't know what he thinks about me. And besides, it's obvious that he likes you and not me."

Sakura laughed. "Listen Sachi, Naruto's had a crush on me ever since we were students at the Academy, but I never said anything to him on the subject. In my opinion, I think he'd be happy to have a girlfriend, at least so that he can show off to all of his friends, including me, that he can do it by himself."

"So you're saying I'm a trophy?" Sachi retorted angrily.

"No, of course not!" Sakura assured her. "I'm just saying that it's your duty as a pretty, talented young lady to show a loser like Naruto how things ought to be done."

There was a pause before Sachi spoke again. "You… think I'm pretty?" she asked quietly. "No one ever told me that before."

"Yeah, you have a really nice face!" Sakura replied. "This is another reason why you should be the one to teach Naruto about girls. If something doesn't get done soon, I'm afraid he'll _never_ get married."

"That's a terrible thing to say, Sakura!" Sachi replied in dismay. "How could you think something like that about Naruto? Of course he'll get married one day!"

"But the question is _when_ that'll happen," Sakura added, and Sachi hushed.

_Man, is this the kind of stuff that girls talk about when I'm not around?_ I thought, and I could tell that I was turning red. After all, Sakura was right. I was pretty much a loser when it came to talking to girls, not that I ever tried, but Sakura hasn't really happened yet, and telling by what she had just said about me, there was as good as zero chance with us. Sachi, on the other hand, was pretty, funny… and her hair was long, too, way longer than Sakura's, although I didn't think that it was as long as when we were younger. Wait… what was I talking about? Why was I thinking about this stuff?

The stars were shining brightly in the sky as I grabbed my towel from the side of the bath and got out of the water. It had been quiet for a while, so I assumed that the girls had gone upstairs for dinner. It was pretty late, so there wasn't anyone in the lobby other than the pretty girl with the clipboard, who smiled at me when I walked by after changing back into my clothes.

I came upstairs and walked into my room, not bothering to turn on the light. My head jerked up as I heard shuffling outside, and I saw someone landing quietly on the balcony. It was Sachi, I could tell by the acrobatic way she slid across the ground before coming to a stop.

_What does she want? _ I wondered, walking towards the door. I took one of the candles that were on the circular window and lit it before sliding the door open.

"Hey," she said quietly, leaning on the bar. "I don't want Sakura to know that I'm here, so I thought I should probably say this before she finds out I'm not in my bed."

"Okay, shoot," I answered, handing her the candle. She looked at the flame, and her eyes became hazy for a second, as if she were having a flashback or something.

"Are you okay?" I asked, and she shook herself awake.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied quickly. "Naruto, do you… do you think I'm childish?"

I rubbed the back of my head sheepishly. "Uh, yeah kinda. But it's funny."

"Funny in a good way or in a bad way?" she pressed.

"Look, I dunno why you're asking me this stuff," I answered, trying not to look awkward. "I think the stuff you do is stupid, but it takes a whole lot of guts. You're childish, but gutsy. Does that answer your question?"

"That's funny. It sounds just like what Sakura said about you," Sachi replied quietly, and I paused. We looked away from each other uneasily and it got quiet.

"Is there… something else?" I asked, pointing to the inside of my room. "Because I'm getting kinda tired, and-"

"Naruto, am I pretty?" she asked suddenly, and I swallowed.

"Uh… sure…" I replied, looking her over. To be honest, with her hair not being pinned up and everything, and her eyes all big and embarrassed, I guess she actually did look kinda pretty. In fact, she looked really pretty, prettier than Sakura even. Her face was nice and symmetrical, and she didn't have any weird defects or craters in her face. Her eyes weren't lopsided or anything and she wasn't fat or ugly, nor did she have battle scars (although it would've been pretty cool)…

Sachi's face fell when I answered. "Oh… okay," she mumbled, turning to leave.

_You blew it, man!_ I thought angrily as she climbed the gate. _How could you just let her walk away like that? Are you stupid? She even said that she liked you, and she's actually making an attempt to tell you, and you're acting like a total moron! Think about it, when has a girl ever said she liked you? And what are the chances that she's pretty, fast, funny, and can cook ramen better than Teuchi? She wants you, man! Take some initiative! You can do anything, but you have to do it before she walks away…!_

"Sachi, wait!"

"What…?"

Before I knew what I was doing, I was kissing her.

And it was the weirdest moment in my entire life.

We both had our eyes open, and were staring at each other in shock. _I_ didn't know what I was doing, _she_ obviously didn't know what I was doing either, but the point was that I was doing it.

After counting three seconds in my head, I stepped back, my face totally red as I hung my head. That was just _so_ embarrassing…

"What… was that for?" Sachi asked, and I could hardly hear her over the loudness of my heart pounding in my throat.

"I dunno… isn't that what I was supposed to do?" I mumbled. There was a really long, awkward silence after that, and I wondered if Sachi wanted to slap me really hard.

"Does that… mean you like me?"

I looked up, laughing nervously. "Well, I guess I wouldn't have done that if I hated you, right?"

"Oh, uh… yeah, I guess not, heh…" she replied, looking away.

"So do you wanna…?" I asked, taking a step towards her. She shrugged.

"Only if you want me to be your… you know."

"Right, that," I answered with a half-smile. The whole situation wasn't exactly going as I had planned it, but at least she wasn't beating me to a pulp.

"_Oh, Naruto! This is all so sudden!" she cried, her long, auburn hair floating gently in the soft, nighttime breeze as she ran to him, arms outstretched. The beautiful woman threw them around the neck of the handsome and muscular young man with a languorous sigh, and there he two lovers stood, basking in each other's presence until the first gentle rays of sunlight began to pierce through the thickness of the night…_

"I'm gonna go to bed now, before Sakura gets mad at me. And anyways, we've gotta head out pretty early tomorrow morning," Sachi said, breaking my happy train of thought. I nodded quickly.

"Yeah, sure, m-me too," I stammered, taking the candle from her. "I mean, uh… yeah. Right."

"So uh… good night!" she said with fake cheer before disappearing into her room in a flash.

"Right, that," I replied, waving weakly before stumbling into mine.


End file.
